Despite the widening, the discount was higher than minus $6, a level typically considered to incentivize exports as a narrower discount makes U.S.-linked grades more expensive for foreign buyers. Meanwhile, crude stocks dipped unexpectedly, according to sources citing data from the American Petroleum Institute. Inventories fell by about 6.1 million barrels in the week ended March 24, they said, compared with estimates for a rise of about 200,000 barrels last week.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration will publish its inventory data at 10:30 a.m. EDT on Wednesday.
* Light Louisiana Sweet for April delivery fell 10
cents to a midpoint of a $1.90 premium and was bid and offered
between a $1.80 and a $2.00 a barrel premium to WTI.
* Mars Sour eased 70 cents to a midpoint of a
$1.95 discount and traded between a $1.80 and a $2.10 discount a
barrel to WTI.
* WTI Midland eased 20 cents to trade at a
midpoint of an 80-cent premium and traded between a 60-cent and
a $1 a barrel premium to WTI.
* West Texas Sour eased 35 cents to a midpoint of
a $1.20 discount and was bid and offered between a $2.20 and a
20-cent a barrel discount to WTI.
* WTI at East Houston, also known as MEH, traded between 75
cents and $1.25 over WTI.
* ICE Brent May futures rose 53 cents to settle at
$78.65 a barrel.
* WTI April crude futures rose 39 cents to settle at
$73.20 a barrel.
* The Brent/WTI spread widened 7 cents to
minus $5.38, after hitting a high of minus $5.03 and a low of
minus $5.47.
(Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar in Houston
Editing by Matthew Lewis)
