Dirty and Sludgy Oil Is Having Its Moment as Demand Shifts
- Medium-sour crude is fetching higher prices in Asia’s market
- Profit from making fuel oil jumps while diesel falls sharply
This article is for subscribers only.
Oil that’s more sulfurous and dense is gaining popularity in the Asian physical market in a rare shift away from the usual pattern as global crude flows change and rewards from refining move in its favor.
Middle Eastern varieties that have medium-density and higher sulfur such as Oman and Upper Zakum are now fetching bigger spot premiums than grades like Murban. That’s unusual as the latter is a lighter oil, typically regarded as better quality since it has a rich yield of refined fuels such as diesel.