东京 — 尽管燃油价格上涨，亚洲和欧洲的炼油厂仍因原油运输成本飙升而难以盈利。
TOKYO -- Oil refineries in Asia and Europe are struggling to make a profit despite higher fuel prices due to the surging costs of shipping crude oil.
根据伦敦证券交易所集团（LSEG）的数据，欧洲基准地点鹿特丹的炼油利润率于10月5日跌至每桶负10.95美元。亚洲基准地点新加坡的炼油利润率于9月10日跌破每桶负4美元。
The refinery margin in Rotterdam, the benchmark gauge for Europe, fell to negative $10.95 per barrel on Oct. 5, according to the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). The Singapore benchmark for Asia dropped past negative $4 on Sept. 10.
炼油利润率代表炼油厂石油产品收入与采购原油所涉及的全部成本之间的差额，其中包括运输成本。今年3月和4月，由于伊朗战争导致原油价格上涨，炼油利润率曾短暂跌入负值区间。
The refinery margin represents the difference between petroleum product revenue from refineries and all the costs involved in procuring crude oil, including shipping. During March and April of this year, the margin temporarily fell into negative territory owing to the higher crude prices from the Iran war.
此后直至最近几周，炼油利润率总体保持在正值区间。但自9月以来，由于中东紧张局势升级，油轮运费急剧上升，情况发生了变化。
Since then and until recent weeks, refinery margins had generally remained in positive territory. What changed was the sharp rise in tanker freight rates since September on escalating Middle East tensions.
LSEG表示，目前连接中东与亚洲或欧洲航线，以及非洲至欧洲航线的超大型原油船运费，大约在每桶20至40美元之间波动。这比正常水平高出10倍以上。
According to the LSEG, shipping rates for very large crude carriers currently hover around $20 to $40 a barrel for routes connecting the Mideast to Asia or Europe, as well as for Africa-to-Europe routes. This is more than 10 times the normal level.
霍尔木兹海峡事实上被封锁后，原油和石油产品价格均出现上涨。夏季，随着供应预期复苏，原油价格有所回落，而石油产品价格则继续上涨。
After the de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, prices of crude oil and petroleum products have surged. In the summer, crude prices eased on an anticipated recovery in supplies, while petroleum product prices rose further.
这些趋势推高了所谓的裂解价差——即石油产品价格与单纯原油成本之间的价差。美国和欧洲市场的柴油裂解价差目前正接近期货合约的历史最高水平。
Those trends have driven up the so-called crack spreads between petroleum product prices and the cost of crude oil alone. The crack spreads for diesel in the U.S. and European markets are currently approaching all-time highs in terms of futures contracts.
但尽管这一指标令人欣喜，欧洲和亚洲的炼油厂仍感受到利润空间被压缩的压力。这种脱节主要是由于运输成本上升所致。
But despite that rosy indicator, refineries in Europe and Asia have have felt the squeeze on profit margins. This disconnect is largely the result of higher transport costs.
欧洲炼油厂纷纷转向运输时间更短的欧洲原油，以此降低运输成本。摩根士丹利表示：“与仍需满足需求的长途原油相比，布伦特原油品级在西北欧地区具有每桶10至15美元的成本优势。”
European refiners have rushed to European crude with its shorter transit times to reduce transport costs. "Brent grades have a $10-$15/bbl cost advantage into Northwest Europe compared to longer-haul crudes, which are still required to meet demand," according to Morgan Stanley.
这种转变导致北海布伦特原油现货价格在10月初飙升至每桶超过154美元的历史高点，较期货价格高出50%，对试图降低运输成本的欧洲炼油厂影响尤为显著。
This shift sent the spot price of North Sea Brent crude oil soaring to a record high of over $154 per barrel in early October, 50% higher than futures prices, most significantly affecting those European refiners that were trying to cut transport costs.
主要从中东采购原油的亚洲国家正因运输成本上升而承受巨大冲击。虽然它们仍能通过更长的航线获得原油，但这些航线会产生巨额运输成本。
Asian countries, which source crude mainly from the Middle East, are being hit hard by the higher transportation costs. While they are still able to secure crude that arrives through much longer routes, those routes incur massive transport costs.
由于北美管道使其免受此类运输成本变化的影响，美国炼油厂的利润率仍然居高不下，超过每桶60美元。然而，随着运输柴油和其他石油产品的油轮运费也在上升，尽管美国炼油成本较低，套利机会正变得越来越不可行。
Margins remain high at U.S. refineries, at over $60 per barrel, as North American pipelines leave them unaffected by such changes in transport costs. Yet with freight rates for tankers that carry diesel and other petroleum products also rising, opportunities for arbitrage are becoming less viable despite lower U.S. refining costs.
国际能源署上周发布的一份报告指出：“这使得炼油厂面临接受原料成本大幅上升、转向次优原油品级并降低产品产出，或削减炼油厂产量的选择，而后者将进一步收紧市场。”
"This leaves refiners facing the choice of accepting sharply higher feedstock costs, switching to less optimal crude grades and reducing product yields, or curtailing refinery throughput, which would further tighten markets," according to a report released last week by the International Energy Agency.