The US Atlantic Coast gasoline market was unfazed by the general strike in France as product coming off the Colonial Pipeline was heard to be keeping the region supplied.
Staff from seven of eight refineries in France joined a general strike Thursday, impacting access to terminals and ports.
A regional market source said barrels of gasoline flowing up the Colonial Pipeline from the US Gulf Coast to the US Atlantic Coast, which is a net importer of gasoline from Europe, were keeping the market from reacting.
Gasoline coming off the Colonial Pipeline in Linden, New Jersey, was assessed unchanged Thursday with conventional gasoline at futures plus 3.75 cents/gal, CBOB at futures plus 0.50 cent/gal and RBOB at futures plus 0.50 cent/gal.
Strength in Colonial Pipeline space was heard to be keeping product flowing up from the US Gulf Coast. Colonial Line 1 space value is usually indicative of profitability to send blendstocks from Houston to the NYH area and usually has an inverse relationship to gasoline.
Gasoline coming off the Colonial Pipeline for delivery in Linden was assessed unchanged day on day Thursday, with conventional gasoline at futures plus 3.75 cents/gal, CBOB at futures plus 0.50 cent/gal and RBOB at futures plus 0.50 cent/gal. Conventional gasoline coming off the pipeline was heard to be bid at futures plus 4 cents/gal early Friday, while New York Harbor CBOB and RBOB were heard to trade 25 points/gal lower to futures plus 0.25 cent/gal.
Historically, Colonial Line 1 space starts rising in November, reaches maximum values during January and continues positive for the rest of the winter.
This year Colonial Line 1 space value-rally flipped to positive at the end of October, and the demand for prompt product continued supporting it. Colonial Line 1 space was assessed at 3 cents Thursday, up 75 points compared with Wednesday's assessment of 2.25 cents.
Though there was no impact on prices or supply from the strike, it was uncertain whether there would be any effect later.
"Always difficult to know how hard the strike will go," a second regional market source said. "Very unpredictable."
