State oil giant Saudi Aramco has sealed a deal to purchase up to 360,000 tons of gasoline over six months from BP and Lukoil at below-market prices, industry sources said on Tuesday.

Officials at BP and Lukoil could not immediately be reached for comment. The world’s top crude exporter concluded a deal to purchase 95-octane and 91-octane from January through June at a premium of $15-$16 and $5-$6 over the benchmark Mediterranean quote, the sources said.
It also has an option to purchase 95-octane at $2-$2.10 over Singapore benchmark quotes and 91-octane at a premium of $1.90 to $2 over the Singapore benchmark.
“These are really crazy prices; it’s below where the market really is,” said an Asian-based gasoline trader. “The market isn’t particularly that weak, so they really have got quite a good deal here.”
Demand for gasoline in Saudi Arabia is growing at 5.1 per cent annually. The kingdom typically imports between 60,000 bpd to 70,000 bpd of the motor fuel.
(Source: Reuters)