Japan's gasoline demand during last week's peak summer travel period fell below the 1-million-kiloliter (6.29-million-barrel) mark for the first time during the Obon holiday week since 2008, according to the Oil Information Center.
The lower-than-expected demand was attributed to a combination of 70-month-high retail gasoline prices and Typhoon Halong, an Oil Information Center official said Wednesday. The severe tropical storm crossed the country August 10, the first day of the holiday week.
Workers in Japan typically take summer holidays and travel long distances to their hometowns during Obon in mid-August, which boosts demand for gasoline. The week is not a public holiday.
In the week to August 16, Japan's estimated gasoline shipments were around 965,000 kl, down from 1.124 million kl the previous week, according to the Oil Information Center's calculations based on Petroleum Association of Japan data.
The country's gasoline shipments over August 10-16 were estimated at 1.27 million kl, down 24% year on year, while the estimated gasoline shipments over August 3-9 were nearly flat from 1.122 million kl a year earlier, according to the Oil Information Center calculations.
Japan's average retail price for regular gasoline slid for a fifth straight week to Yen 169/liter ($6.08/gal) as of August 18 due mainly to weaker international crude benchmarks, according to the Oil Information Center.
The national average retail gasoline price remains the highest since Yen 170.2/l on September 29, 2008.
Japan's gasoline stocks increased 3.2% week on week to 1.6 million kl over August 10-16, while the stocks slid 4.4% week on week to 1.55 million kl over August 3-9, according to PAJ data released Wednesday.
Japan exported 36,740 kl of gasoline in the week to August 16, 77 times higher than 479 kl exported over August 3-9, PAJ data showed.
The August 3-9 gasoline exports plunged 98.8% from 39,523 kl the previous week, according to PAJ.
