Europe Gasoline/Naphtha-Gasoline margins slide on demand uncertainty

LONDON, April 9 (Reuters) - Northwest European gasoline refining profit margins fell by about $1 a barrel on Wednesday to $12.42 a barrel despite lower U.S. inventories, amid growing fears of a global recession which could hit oil demand.

• A total of 4,000 metric tons of Eurobob E5 traded, with Vitol selling to Litasco.

• Another 10,000 tons of Eurobob E10 traded as Varo bought from Litasco and Gunvor.

• Vitol bought a cargo from Trafigura for Mediterranean loading in the Platts window.

• U.S. gasoline stocks USOILG=ECI fell by 1.6 million barrels last week to 236 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration said, compared with expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.5 million-barrel drawdown.​

• Product supplied of gasoline, a proxy for demand, fell to 8.4 million bpd from 8.5 million bpd in the previous week. Lower consumption heading into the peak summer demand season has worried some investors.

• China and the European Union announced new trade tariffs on U.S. goods on Wednesday in response to steep duties imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, escalating a global trade war that has raised the likelihood of recession.

• Brent prices fell below $60 a barrel for the first time since February 2021 on the tariff news on Wednesday.

• EU and UK gasoline and blending component exports to other regions are expected to reach 721,000 bpd in April, down from 850,000 bpd in March, Kpler data shows.

• Wider gasoline-naphtha spreads are opening up various arbitrage opportunities for gasoline blenders in ARA, according to Sparta Commodities' Philip Jones-Lux, including to Mexico and Canada that would usually be serviced by the U.S. Gulf coast refining hub.