Traders chase dwindling oil refining profits

By Ahmad Ghaddar and Libby George LONDON (Reuters) - Trade firms that profited from the renaissance in global refining over the past two years are bracing for tougher times as ample stocks, dwindling volatility and newly powerful refineries in China squeeze opportunities, the chiefs of major trade houses told the Reuters Commodities Summit. The oil price crash was a windfall for traders, who cashed in by helping the world manage the imbalance in supply and demand it created – for example,