London (Platts)--22Apr2008

Weakness in the European gasoline market and extensive refinery
maintenance in Australia encouraged traders to move gasoline from Europe to
Australia in the first quarter of 2008, European trading sources said Tuesday.

Despite the high price environment, the European gasoline market has been
relatively weak in the early months of 2008, largely due to dwindling buying
interest from the US market and thin European demand.

As a result traders have been eyeing any available opportunities to move
gasoline out of Europe, with heavy volumes moving to West Africa and Asia from
both Northwest Europe and the Mediterranean.

Refinery maintenance in Australia left the country struggling with
domestic supplies in the first quarter of 2008, enabling European traders to
step in and meet demand, despite the voyage being one of the longest in the
world.

The fluid catalytic cracker at Shell's 85,000 b/d Clyde refinery in
Australia has been off line since January, while there has also been
maintenance at Caltex Australia's Lytton and Kurnell refineries in the first
quarter of 2008.

"We've moved a bit of oil there (Australia) from Europe," said a trader
at a European oil major, "I know one or two other companies have also been
sending oil there as well. Typically Australia would import from Singapore or
Korea, but a lot of oil has been going in to China in the build-up to the
Olympics."

Because of draught restrictions in many of Australia's ports, traders are
forced to charter MR-size tankers to Australia from Europe carrying no more
than 37,000 mt of gasoline.