ICONIC Lubricants was Brazil’s largest lubricants supplier in January even as its sales and share of the country’s sales fell to a three-month low.

Lubricant producer and distributor Moove was the country’s second-largest lube supplier in January on the back of a jump in sales volume and a higher share of total sales.

Brazil’s lube demand of 86,580mᶟ (76,690t) in January rebounded by 20pc from a year earlier as a recovery in demand for passenger car motor oils (PCMO) extended to heavy-duty engine oils (HDEO) and industrial oils.

ICONIC accounted for around 23pc of the January volume. The share was down from around 25pc the previous month as a slump in its PCMO sales countered higher sales of HDEO and industrial oils.

Moove’s share of Brazil’s lube sales rose to almost 23pc of the January total. The share was up from less than 20pc the previous month as its sales volumes rose to a three-month high.

Its sales and share of sales rose even as its industrial lube sales fell from December.

The higher share instead reflected a surge in its PCMO sales to the highest since early 2021.

The higher sales boosted its share of Brazil’s PCMO sales to more than 25pc of the total in January. The share was up from less than 16pc in December.

Brazil’s PCMO sales rose more strongly than HDEO and industrial oils sales in January. They also fell less steeply than the other lubricants during the second half of last year.

The strength of Brazil’s PCMO demand boosted the product’s share of total sales to more than 30pc during each of the last three months to January.

Moove’s January sales benefited from that strength.

Vibra Energia was Brazil’s third-largest lube supplier in January. Its share of the country’s sales held steady at more than 22pc of the total.

Raizen remained Brazil’s fourth-largest lube supplier, and Petronas the fifth-largest.