S Korea’s April base oils exports rise

South Korea’s base oils exports stayed high in April even amid a slowdown in regional demand.

Base oils exports of 391,060t in April rose from 375,370t the previous month, government data showed.

The volume outpaced typical levels of around 359,000 t/month over the past year.

Exports of 1.57mn t in the first four months of the year were up 9pc from 1.44mn t during the same period last year.

The higher export volumes coincided with increasingly firm regional base oils values relative to crude and diesel, incentivizing refiners to boost output.