Asphalt peak season is ending—no surprises: front-month ¥4,748/t down three weeks, East China utilization cut to 62.3% (3-mo low), social drawdown slowed from 1.8%/wk to 0.9%/wk. Import landed cost ¥62–92/t below domestic; arb window shut. Contractors draw down inventories, traders skip forward builds.