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Bloomberg
Chinese refiners are snapping up low-price oil from all over the world as Asia’s largest economy emerges from a virus-driven slump.
Varieties such as Alaska North Slope, Canada’s Cold Lake and Brazil’s Lula have been offered at steep discounts to global benchmark prices as sellers scrambled to secure buyers.
Processors in China — where throughput is back to pre-virus levels — are snagging many of the bargains as much of the rest of the world remains in lockdown. Spot supplies of Cold Lake were sold by a European trader at a discount of between $8 and $9 a barrel to Brent on a delivered basis, while an oil major sold a shipment comprising Alaskan North Slope and Brazilian grades at a $5.50 to $6 discount, said traders in Asia.