Northwest European gasoline refinery margins increased by approximately 90 cents on Friday, reaching $26.91 per barrel, as tighter supplies and robust buying activity provided support.

Trading activity in the Argus window saw about 23,000 metric tons of E5 gasoline barges change hands, with BP, Shell, Equinor and Trafigura acting as sellers to TotalEnergies.

An additional 9,400 tons of E10 gasoline barges were traded, with Shell, Total and Trafigura selling to MB Energy, Van Raak and Exxon.

Gasoline inventories stored independently in the Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp refining and storage hub decreased by around 6.3% during the week, according to data from Dutch consultancy Insights Global released on Thursday. Naphtha stocks also declined 4.3% to 374,000 tons.

Libya’s Zawiya oil refinery, which processes 120,000 barrels per day, was shut down and an emergency declared on Friday following clashes near the facility, according to two engineers and the refinery’s operator.

In the United States, consumer sentiment fell to a record low in early May as elevated gasoline prices pressured household finances and purchasing power, a survey showed on Friday.
Source: Investing.com