It might begin with a call from Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, Kuwait’s national oil company, saying it has a cargo of 30,000 tonnes of jet fuel coming up for sale in the coming weeks. KPC will tell Vitol what quality it is and ask what it is willing to pay. The Kuwaitis will also make the same call to Shell, BP and other potential big buyers. Vitol’s traders around the world will then contact all the buyers they know in their local markets, such as Dubai Airport or Singapore Airlines to see how strong demand is, as well as get a quote for chartering costs. When they have determined how much they think the cargo is worth, which can take several days, the company will give KPC a price.