Israel’s April base oil imports extend fall

Israel’s base oil imports extended their fall in April amid a sharp slowdown in shipments from Asia-Pacific and US.

Base oil imports of 9,670 kilolitres (8,570t) in April fell from 12,290kl the previous month and by 80pc from year-earlier levels of close to 50,000kl, government data showed.

Imports had previously averaged close to 23,000 kl/month over the past year.

Total imports of 38,090kl in the first four months of the year were down 68pc from 119,400kl during the same period last year. The volume was the lowest for that period since the beginning of 2018.

Shipments to Israel have slumped following the implementation of taxes on base oil and lubricant imports from late last year.

Markets like Turkey also saw a similar slump in imports several years ago following the implementation of new rules and licenses for base oil shipments.

Israel had previously attracted supplies of very-light grade base oils from markets like South Korea.

Shipments from South Korea have almost ground to a halt this year.

The share of Israel’s base oil imports of European origin has instead risen to around 30pc of the total so far this year. The share was up from around 17pc during the first four months of last year.