Argus Media

Welcome to this Methanol Market Puts-and-Takes podcast episode, part of the Chemical Conversations series.

In this episode, Senior Fuels and Octane consultant Roel Salazar and Dave McCaskill, VP of Methanol & Derivatives discuss:

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Os combustíveis sintéticos se destacam como uma rota promissora para alcançar zero emissões líquidas de gases de efeito estufa no transporte marítimo até 2050. Natália Coelho, colaboradora do relatório Argus Marine Fuels, e Pâmela Machado, que cobre hidrogênio e derivados, discutem as oportunidades e desafios em torno desses combustíveis limpos, incluindo o recente adiamento da votação sobre precificação de carbono na Organização Marítima Internacional. 

Synthetic fuels stand out as a promising pathway toward achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions in maritime transport by 2050. Natalia Coelho, a contributor to the Argus Marine Fuels report, and Pamela Machado, who covers hydrogen and derivatives, discuss the opportunities and challenges surrounding these clean fuels, including the recent postponement of the International Maritime Organization’s vote on carbon pricing. 

Los combustibles sintéticos se destacan como una vía prometedora para alcanzar emisiones netas cero de gases de efecto invernadero en el transporte marítimo para 2050. Natalia Coelho, colaboradora del informe Argus Marine Fuels, y Pamela Machado, quien cubre el hidrógeno y derivados, analizan las oportunidades y desafíos en torno a estos combustibles limpios, incluida la reciente postergación de la votación sobre la tarificación del carbono en la Organización Marítima Internacional. 

As part of our 5-part series looking into the outlook for refined products in 2026, this episode takes a deep dive into the global gasoline market.

The global gasoline market saw unseasonable strength in the final quarter of 2025, and this episode breaks down what’s behind it. We also discuss how EV adoption, policy shifts, and blending mandates are reshaping demand across key regions, assess the impact of new mega‑refineries on traditional trade flows, and highlight the critical drivers to watch as we move into 2026.

Gasoline cracks surprised to the upside in late 2025, peaking in November across Europe and Asia as widespread refinery maintenance in Asia and the Middle East tightened supply. But moving further into 2026, gasoline cracks are expected to come under pressure from more consistent gasoline supply and lengthening balances, particularly in the Atlantic Basin.

Listen to our market experts, Emma Pike - Gasoline Analyst, George Maher-Bonnett – Deputy Editor and Asill Bardh – Senior Reporter, as they discuss the latest developments shaping the global gasoline market, reflect on how it evolved through 2025, and outline the critical drivers to watch as we move into 2026. 

In this episode, our market experts examine how shifting trade flows, growing shipping uncertainty and evolving supply dynamics are reshaping the global bitumen landscape in 2026. Importers across Asia are navigating longer voyage times, tighter vessel availability and escalating freight costs, all of which are creating greater unpredictability in securing prompt cargoes. The discussion also delves into Asia‑Pacific’s rapidly changing supply picture, driven in part by a sharp rise in Chinese exports. Competitive pricing from China is increasingly redefining traditional trade relationships across Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand.

The episode further explores how infrastructure spending trends are diverging across major regional markets. China faces slowing growth, while India, Southeast Asia and Australia continue to benefit from stronger project pipelines. These contrasting demand trajectories highlight how broader economic conditions, government investment and market maturity are influencing consumption patterns. Collectively, these factors illustrate a bitumen market in transition, shaped by new trade routes, shifting competitiveness and evolving regional demand.

Hear Argus’ essential analysis of what’s driving China’s green ammonia production expansion, the Chinese projects leading this growth, where China could export green ammonia to, planned expansion of Chinese ports and tank capacity into 2027, how green ammonia could be priced and the potential impact of premiums and CBAM.

Join Huijun Yao, Editor – Fertilizers and Dinise Chng, Senior Reporter – Fertilizers as they discuss these topics in the latest episode of Argus' Fertilizer Matters podcast series.

Key questions answered in this podcast:

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In this episode, Vulcan Energy CEO Cris Moreno joins Argus reporters Chris Welch and Avinash Govind to discuss the company’s latest progress at its Lionheart project in southwest Germany, following the start of new geothermal drilling activity to support Phase One development in Landau.

Key topics include:

Huge US propane inventories and the outlook for Chinese LPG demand were top of mind at Argus’ LPG forum in February.

Peter Wilton, Argus’ editor of International LPG in London, joins US NGLs editor Amy Strahan in this podcast to discuss trends and the global outlook discussed in this week’s LPG presentations in Houston. 

Ongoing tensions in the Red Sea are diverting tanker vessels away from the Suez Canal. Erika Tsirikou and Josh Michalowski break down the latest developments and what they mean for clean tanker and diesel markets.

Key Points