Europe Gasoline/Naphtha-Gasoline refining margins jump

LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) - Northwest European gasoline refinery profit margins rose sharply by nearly $7 a barrel to $23.70 on Monday in a volatile trading session that saw sharp losses in underlying crude prices.

• About 20,000 metric tons of E10 gasoline barges traded in the Argus window as TotalEnergies, Sahara, BP and Trafigura sold to Varo, Shell and E3.

• An additional 3,300 tons of E5 gasoline barges traded in the session, with Trafigura and ExxonMobil selling to TotalEnergies.

• Oil prices dropped about 11% on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would postpone any military strikes against Iranian power plants for five days and cited constructive talks to resolve hostilities in the Middle East.

• European and U.S. gasoline cargoes are heading to the Asia Pacific after Asian prices surged on tightening supply due to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, according to trade sources and shipping data.

• EU-27 and UK gasoline and component exports to other regions have averaged 730,000 barrels per day so far in March, according to Kpler data, compared with an average of 883,000 bpd in the whole of February.