SINGAPORE: Asia’s 10-ppm sulphur gasoil margins firmed at the start of the week following trading optimism over the reopening of China’s borders, amid a late afternoon uptrend in oil futures.

Refining margins for 10 ppm sulphur gasoil surged by more than $1 a barrel to close the session at $31.53 a barrel.

Cash differentials for 10 ppm sulphur gasoil went down slightly to $1.67 a barrel amid a buy-sell gap for January-February parcels.

This was amid a narrower prompt-forward month spreads in the paper swaps market. Similarly, jet fuel refining margins went up to $30.70 a barrel. Regrade was little changed at minus 83 cents a barrel.

Oil prices climbed on Monday as the borders reopened in China, the world’s top crude importer, boosting the outlook for fuel demand growth and offsetting global recession concerns.

China issued a second batch of 2023 crude oil import quotas, according to two sources with knowledge of the matter and documents reviewed by Reuters on Monday, raising the total for this year by 20% compared to the same time last year.

According to the document from the Ministry of Commerce, 44 companies, mostly independent refiners, were given 111.82 million tonnes in import quotas in this round.—Reuters