亞洲苯受原油價(jià)格提振 美國(guó)套利窗口仍關(guān)閉

據(jù)ICIS網(wǎng)站9月17日消息 亞洲苯市場(chǎng)受到堅(jiān)挺原油期貨的提振，此前美國(guó)海上生產(chǎn)因颶風(fēng)薩莉而停產(chǎn)。

現(xiàn)貨苯價(jià)格上漲至415美元/噸以上（韓國(guó)離岸價(jià)格），此前受到了來(lái)自活躍原油的沖擊，從本周上半周約406.5美元/噸上漲。

布倫特原油期貨價(jià)格在最近跌破40美元/桶后突破42美元/桶，美國(guó)原油庫(kù)存下跌。

不過(guò)，苯價(jià)格的上漲似乎仍受到亞洲供應(yīng)充足的影響。

泰國(guó)一家供應(yīng)商表示：“市場(chǎng)稍顯堅(jiān)挺，對(duì)原油的影響還不是很大?！?/span>

苯被用來(lái)生產(chǎn)一些中間體，這些中間體被用來(lái)制造聚合物、溶劑和洗滌劑。

在8月下旬和9月上旬的一些交易解禁后，近幾周，亞美現(xiàn)貨套利窗口仍處于關(guān)閉狀態(tài)。

新加坡一位經(jīng)紀(jì)商表示：“盡管美國(guó)股市走高，但套利交易仍在關(guān)閉?！?/span>

與此同時(shí)，根據(jù)ICIS 9月11日的數(shù)據(jù)，中國(guó)進(jìn)口需求依然疲弱，海岸罐庫(kù)存保持在27萬(wàn)噸左右。

大多數(shù)用戶繼續(xù)依賴國(guó)內(nèi)貨物來(lái)滿足生產(chǎn)要求。

“幾個(gè)月來(lái)，有關(guān)進(jìn)口材料的討論一直很冷淡，”一位在中國(guó)的經(jīng)紀(jì)人表示。

該地區(qū)的充足供應(yīng)繼續(xù)限制了區(qū)域苯市場(chǎng)的漲幅，迄今為止，原油價(jià)格飆升的影響有限。

不過(guò)，一些與會(huì)者表示，颶風(fēng)薩莉過(guò)后，美國(guó)煉油廠長(zhǎng)期停產(chǎn)，可能推高原油價(jià)格，這可能對(duì)亞洲苯市場(chǎng)造成壓力。

王磊 摘譯自 ICIS

原文如下：

Asia benzene buoyed by firm crude; arbitrage window to US still shut

Asia’s benzene market was bolstered by firm crude oil futures, following US offshore production shutdowns from Hurricane Sally.

Spot benzene prices rose above $415/tonne FOB (free on board) Korea, after receiving a shot in the arm from buoyant crude, from around $406.5/tonne FOB Korea in the first half of the week.

Brent crude futures topped $42/bbl, after slipping under $40/bbl recently, as US crude stocks declined.

The uptick in benzene prices, however, appeared to be still tempered by ample availability in Asia.

“The market is slightly firmer, the crude oil impact is not very significant yet,” said a supplier in Thailand.

Benzene is used to produce a number of intermediates that are used to create polymers, solvents and detergents.

The Asia-US spot arbitrage window remained closed in recent weeks, after some second-half August and first-half September lots were lifted.

“The arbitrage is still closed despite US market moving higher,” said a broker in Singapore.

Meanwhile, Chinese import demand remained weak with shore tank inventories staying elevated at around 270,000 tonnes, according to ICIS data on 11 September.

Most users continued to rely on domestic cargoes to meet production requirements.

“Discussions for import material have been thin for months,” said a broker in China.

The ample availability in the region continued to cap gains in regional benzene market, with impact of crude spike having only a limited effect so far.

A protracted shutdown of US refineries in the aftermath of Hurricane Sally, however, could push crude prices higher, which could exert pressure on the Asian benzene market, some participants said.