SINGAPORE- Middle East crude benchmarks were mixed on Wednesday, as DME Oman's premium edged down while cash Dubai's premium rose.
The spot premium for Upper Zakum crude weakened as cargoes were still available, a trader said.
Mitsui bought a cargo of Upper Zakum from ExxonMobil for loading on Aug. 1-25 at $1.20 a barrel above Dubai quotes on Platts window, a second trader said. The premium is down from an offer from ExxonMobil a day earlier at $1.55 a barrel.
More July-loading Basra Light crude cargoes changed hands at steady levels of more than 80 cents a barrel to its official selling price (OSP), similar to the level seen in SOMO's tender, a third trader said, although it was not immediately clear who bought or sold the cargoes.
Overall, even though refiners' margins are recovering from May lows, high OSPs have dampened demand for spot crude this month, traders said.
ASIA-PACIFIC CRUDE: PV Oil has sold a spot Bach Ho light crude cargo loading on Aug. 12-25 at a premium of more than $3 a barrel to dated Brent.
It also sold term Bach Ho light crude for loading between July and December likely to an European trader at a premium of more than $2 a barrel to dated Brent, traders said. The buyer can lift 10,000 barrels per day or 300,000 barrels per cargo during this period.
Bunga Kekwa and Bunga Orkid cargoes loading in August have also been sold at premiums of more than $2 a barrel to dated Brent, one of the traders said.
NEWS
Tankers carrying nearly two months worth of Venezuelan oil output are stuck at sea as global refiners shun the nation's crude to avoid falling foul of U.S. sanctions, according to industry sources, PDVSA documents and shipping data.
Singapore's Hin Leong Trading (Pte) Ltd has no future as an independent company after it "grossly overstated" the value of its assets by at least $3 billion, according to a preliminary report prepared by a court-appointed supervisor.
India's oil imports in May hit the lowest since Oct 2011 as refiners with brimming storage cut purchases after a continuous decline in fuel demand, preliminary data obtained from industry sources showed.
(Reporting by Florence Tan, Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips) ((Florence.Tan@thomsonreuters.com; +65 6870 3497; Reuters Messaging: florence.tan.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
