S Korea's YNCC seeks 25,000-tonne H2 May naphtha

SINGAPORE (ICIS news)--South Korea’s Yeochun Naphtha Cracking Centre (YNCC) is seeking 25,000 tonnes of open-spec naphtha for delivery in the second half of May, after having bought four 25,000-tonne cargoes of the petrochemical feedstock for arrival in the first half of May, traders said on Wednesday.

Due to an upcoming scheduled turnaround at its 415,000 tonne/year cracker, YNCC’s import appetite for the latter part of May was subdued, they said.

The company would shut the naphtha cracker at Yeocheon in South Korea from 17 May to 20 June.

Asia’s benchmark naphtha crack spread versus Brent crude weakened to $108.55/tonne on Tuesday’s close, the lowest since 9 November 2009 when the crack spread was valued at $101.70/tonne, according to global chemical market intelligence service, ICIS pricing.

($1 = €0.75)