Spot product prices were fairly steady in the week to March 9, as inventory tightness alleviated and some fresh demand emerged. Gasoil prices inched up and differentials jumped amid the emergence of strong demand, which players had called "unusual." The cash differential flipped into a premium on Wednesday. And on Thursday alone, the 10-ppm grade saw nine trades totaling more than 1.4MM mt (10.5MM bbl) changing hands, marking the grade's largest one-day volume so far this year. BP was the dominant buyer. Jet fuel prices, however, bucked the trend by posting a significant movement, dropping for the second week in a row. Differentials dropped sharply during the first half of the period amid concerns that the recent strong seasonal demand had begun waning, but sentiment steathed later in the week due to some more buying interest. Meanwhile, a rebound in middle distillate stocks kept a ceiling over the market. Singaporean inventories of middle distillates jumped to a seven-week high.
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