IOCJ-PBF spread expected to widen

Over the past week, the IOCJ-PBF price spread has widened significantly. As of March 19, the spread stood at Yuan 157/tonne, up Yuan 16/tonne week-on-week, driven by divergent gains in both products.

Specifically, IOCJ prices significantly outpaced PBF. As of March 19, IOCJ rose by Yuan 18/tonne to Yuan 948/tonne, supported by tight supply. Its portside inventory hit a new low for the year, falling to 10.62 million tonnes-a decrease of 3.19% week-on-week and 43.5% year-on-year. In contrast, PBF prices remained