Brent Oil’s Premium to Dubai at Three-Week High: Asia Crude

Brent crude, the benchmark European oil contract, traded at the highest premium in more than three weeks against Dubai, the Mideast grade.
The May Brent-Dubai (PVMMDBSP) exchange for swaps, which measures the European marker grade’s premium against the Middle East oil, rose 10 cents to $4.10 a barrel, the highest since March 5, according to data from PVM Oil Associates Ltd., a London-based brokerage. The June EFS climbed 9 cents to $4.12.
PT Pertamina (PERT), Indonesia’s state oil company, bought 700,000 barrels of Sokol crude for June delivery to the company’s Balikpapan refinery, according to a company official who declined to be identified, citing company policy.

Refinery profit margins in Singapore have averaged $1.51 a barrel over the last five days, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, the lowest since November.
Dubai crude’s backwardation, when the price for delivery now is greater than that for later, fell by 3 cents. Swaps for April were $1.90 a barrel more than June, according to data from PVM Oil Associates Ltd., a London-based broker.
Oman crude for May fell 11 cents to $123.37 on the Dubai Mercantile Exchange at 5:33 p.m. Singapore time, with 1,608 contracts traded. The contract settled at $123.33 at 12:30 p.m. Dubai time.
Nineteen partial cargoes of Dubai crude were sold today in the Platts pricing window, according to a survey of traders who monitor the market.