EVENING SNAPSHOT - Americas Markets Summary

29 March 2011 23:16  [Source: ICIS news]

HOUSTON (ICIS)--Here is Tuesday’s end of day Americas oil and chemical market summary from ICIS.

CRUDE: May WTI: $104.79/bbl, up 81 cents; May Brent: $115.16/bbl, up 36 cents
NYMEX WTI crude futures climbed after reports circulated that the advance of Libyan rebels had been halted, delaying the end to the crisis and the resumption of oil exports. During electronic trading, a much greater-than-forecast build in crude stocks drove WTI down towards $104.45/bbl.

RBOB: Apr: $3.0458/gal, up 1.84 cents
Reformulated gasoline blendstock for oxygenate blending (RBOB) maintained its premium over heating oil futures as investors considered the transition to more expensive summer gasoline blends and higher demand. Prices increased through the day on the coattails of a better performance for US equities.

NATURAL GAS: Apr: $4.240/MMBtu, down 13.4 cents
The front-month natural gas contract plunged in a sell-off on the last day of trading for the April contract. The contract fell 3.1% and expired at settlement. The new May front month dropped even further on the day, shedding 18.5 cents.

ETHANE: up at 71.00-74.00 cents/gal
Mont Belvieu ethane rebounded from morning lows that were based on falling natural gas and crude prices early in the day. Sources said ethane held an emotional tie to crude oil and followed it higher as it rallied in the afternoon.

AROMATICS: styrene flat at 66.75-67.25 cents/lb
Prompt styrene traded at 67.00 cents/lb FOB (free on board) on Tuesday. The trade kept spot levels unchanged from the previous day.

OLEFINS: ethylene steady at 60.50-61.00 cents/lb
Ethylene spot prices were assessed flat from the previous day with no fresh bids and offers heard in the market.

For more pricing intelligence please visit www.icispricing.com.

By: Staff Reporter
+44 20 8652 3214

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