Price Summary
| Product | Delivery Basis | Price | Weekly Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasolines | |||
| Gasoline 10 ppm | CIF NWE ($/mt) | 1222.00 | +53.75 |
| Eurobob Barges | FOB Rotterdam ($/mt) | 1141.00 | +29.00 |
| Gasoline 92 unleaded | FOB Singapore ($/bbl) | 114.19 | +2.88 |
| Prem Unl 10 ppm | FOB Med ($/mt) | 1186.75 | +77.25 |
| Diesel & Gasoil | |||
| ULSD | CIF NWE ($/mt) | 1377.75 | +50.75 |
| ULSD | CIF Med ($/mt) | 1423.50 | +56.50 |
| ULSD | FOB Med ($/mt) | 1409.50 | +57.50 |
| Gasoil 10 ppm | FOB Arab Gulf ($/bbl) | 155.41 | +0.90 |
| Gasoil | FOB Singapore ($/bbl) | 163.59 | +2.32 |
| Jet | |||
| Jet | CIF NWE ($/mt) | 1336.00 | +42.25 |
| Jet | FOB Med ($/mt) | 1308.50 | +43.75 |
| Naphtha | |||
| Naphtha | CIF NWE ($/mt) | 786.75 | +32.25 |
| Naphtha | FOB Med ($/mt) | 755.75 | +34.00 |
| Naphtha | FOB Singapore ($/bbl) | 89.98 | +4.86 |
| Naphtha | FOB Arab Gulf ($/mt) | 714.92 | +26.03 |
| Fuel Oil | |||
| HSFO 3.5% | CIF Med ($/mt) | 545.75 | +23.00 |
| HSFO 3.5% | FOB Med ($/mt) | 515.50 | +23.25 |
Региональный анализ рынка
Northwest Europe (NWE)
The gasoline market in Northwestern Europe experienced a week marked by a severe shortage of blending stocks: Eurobob prices on FOB ARA barges rose from $1,084/metric ton on Monday to $1,141/metric ton by Friday, accumulating a weekly gain of +$29/metric ton. A shortage of high-octane components—MTBE, toluene, and reformate—prevented an increase in production: the CIF ARA toluene premium to the swap on Friday stood at $309.50/t, while the MTBE FOB ARA premium stood at $345/metric ton. Transatlantic arbitrage remained closed for most of the week: the RBOB–EBOB spread fell to 2.56 cents per gallon on Thursday—its lowest level since late March. The backwardation on the forward curve widened sharply: the September/October spread closed at $108/metric ton, reflecting tightness in the near-term market. Gasoline inventories in the ARA hub rose by 3.66% to 877,000 metric tons amid sluggish exports, while distillate inventories fell by 12% to 526,000 metric tons—the lowest level since July 23. Water levels on the Rhine dropped to a critical 6 cm at the Kaub monitoring station early in the week, significantly restricting barge traffic; by Friday, following rainfall over the Alps and the Netherlands, they had recovered to 46 cm.
Mediterranean (Med)
The Mediterranean market was the most volatile segment of the week: prices for Premium Unleaded 10 ppm FOB Med rose by $77.25/metric ton—the largest increase among all tracked products. Attacks by Ukrainian UAVs on oil transshipment infrastructure in the Black Sea region reduced the throughput capacity of Black Sea refineries and related terminals, cutting gasoline supplies to the region. The absence of Russian gasoline on the Mediterranean market forced end consumers to compete for every available shipment: as part of the MOC window procedure, a transaction took place on Tuesday at $1,159/metric ton FOB Med, and by Friday, quotes had exceeded $1,186/mt. ULSD diesel prices in the region rose by $56.50–57.50/metric ton, reaching $1,409–1,424/metric ton, which shifted refineries’ incentives toward maximizing diesel output at the expense of jet fuel. FOB Med jet fuel rose by $43.75/t to $1,308.50/t, however, the crack spread (the difference between jet fuel and diesel cracks) remained negative, as confirmed by market participants themselves. The price of 3.5% HSFO in the region rose by $23/metric ton: CIF Med closed at $545.75/metric ton, and FOB Med at $515.50/metric ton.
Russia & CIS
In the first half of August, shipments of Indian gasoline to Russian ports were recorded: two tankers delivered shipments totaling approximately 650,000 barrels to Russia, which were transferred via ship-to-ship operations near Port Said, Egypt, from vessels that had loaded at the Vadinar terminal in India. On Wednesday, August 19, a minor fire broke out at one of the oil refineries in Ufa (Bashkortostan) following a drone strike, as reported by the republic’s governor. Attacks on pipeline infrastructure in the Black Sea region have reduced the throughput capacity of the CPC export terminal and related facilities, putting pressure on the balance of petroleum product supplies to the Mediterranean. The combination of these factors—logistical disruptions, export restrictions, and ongoing uncertainty regarding the destinations of Russian shipments—sustained high price premiums in the Mediterranean gasoline and middle distillate markets throughout the week.
West Africa (WAF)
Nigerian jet fuel shipments via Dangote’s facilities partially offset the shortfall in Middle Eastern volumes, but fell sharply in August: shipments to Europe for the first half of the month totaled 156,000 metric tons, compared with 433,000 metric tons for the entire month of July. A similar trend was observed in U.S. shipments: the U.S. shipped 262,000 metric tons of jet fuel to Europe since the beginning of August, compared to 408,000 metric tons in July. India, on the other hand, has taken the lead since the beginning of the month (294,000 metric tons—the highest since December 2025), significantly offsetting the shortfall. Trans-regional arbitrage for jet fuel remained largely closed, as freight costs exceeded the regional price differential, and routes from West Africa to Europe lost their appeal as domestic demand in Nigeria grew. According to shipping analytics, approximately 1.8 million metric tons of jet fuel is expected to arrive in Europe in August—down from 1.9 million metric tons in July and significantly less than the 2.7 million metric tons in August 2025.
Global Factors
Geopolitical tensions surrounding the Strait of Hormuz remained the main factor driving prices this week: the market priced in the risk of supply disruptions from the Persian Gulf, which widened the east-west crude oil spread to $47.75/metric ton by the end of Friday and sustained a heavy flow of cargo from the Atlantic Basin to Asia. Gasoline production on the U.S. East Coast remained high—3.43 million barrels/day—but inventories for the week ending August 14 fell by 300,000 barrels to 52.4 million barrels, signaling continued demand. In the European petrochemical sector, cracker utilization rates held steady at 70–75%: On August 18, BASF resumed operations at one of its two steam crackers in Ludwigshafen, while the wide propane–naphtha spread allowed petrochemical producers to partially replace naphtha feedstock with liquefied hydrocarbon gas. On August 21, the ExxonMobil refinery in Foley, UK, completed the restart of a unit that had been shut down on August 14 due to a technical malfunction; at the same time, the company’s Rotterdam plant was returning to full capacity following an emergency shutdown on August 13. Taken together, the shortage of high-octane components, logistical constraints on the Rhine, and instability in the Middle East created a bullish environment for most petroleum products: weekly price increases ranged from $23/metric ton for fuel oil to $77/metric ton for Mediterranean gasoline.