In our latest naphtha market commentary:
> Asian naphtha demand slowing considerably as petchems consumption slackens amid weakening forward steam cracker margins
> Asian steam crackers extend turnaround on growing pessimism, while some northeast Asian units falter on the sweltering heat, sending H1 September premia into negative territory
> ARA naphtha timespreads collapse, but downtrend is far milder due to curtailed Med, ARA refinery output as extreme heat causes operational issues at refineries
> NWE sales prices rise sharply to pull Med barrels West, but spiking freight has narrowed arbs instead, meaning further near-term ARA upside is required
> Rotterdam-NYH arb is firmly shut through end-Q4, mirroring similarly dire outlook in gasoline
