Italy’s lube demand fell in February for a seventh month, highlighting Europe’s protracted slide in consumption of engine oils and industrial oils and the base oil feedstocks to produce the lubricants.Italy's total lube consumption of 32,700 tonnes in February fell by 4% from year-earlier levels, government data showed..Industrial oils demand fell by 9% and for a twelfth month from year-earlier levels.Automobile lube consumption rose by 1% and for the first time in three months from year-earlier levels.Italy’s lube consumption is a useful bellwether for the state of lubricants demand in Europe, whose monthly consumption data is usually released several weeks after Italy.Falling demand in Italy contrasted with firmer lube consumption in other markets like Spain and Poland late last year and early this year.The more mixed demand trends could point to regional consumption bottoming out after several years of contraction.Even so, the ongoing slide in Italy’s lube consumption suggested any recovery would be uneven.The mixed trends incentivized blenders to maintain low inventories and to limit the size of any stock-replenishment plans ahead of a seasonal pick-up in demand from the end of the first quarter.The moves similarly incentivized base oils distributors to maintain lower stocks.The focus on maintaining lower stocks in turn raised the prospect of magnifying the impact of any pick-up in demand in Europe that was stronger than expected.Such a scenario could trigger a stronger rise in requirements for additional base oils supplies and further squeeze the availability of any grades that were already tight.Europe’s services PMI business activity index fell to a four-month low in March, pointing to still-weak economic activity and bolstering lube blenders’ strategy of maintaining low stocks.The region’s manufacturing PMI output index by contrast rose to a thirty-four month high in March amid strong growth in Germany.Any conversion of those preliminary signals into a more marked pick-up in industrial activity could trigger a rise in lubricants consumption over the coming months that is stronger than blenders had planned for..Asia's January lube demand rises.Latin America's Jan lube demand rises
Italy’s lube demand fell in February for a seventh month, highlighting Europe’s protracted slide in consumption of engine oils and industrial oils and the base oil feedstocks to produce the lubricants.Italy's total lube consumption of 32,700 tonnes in February fell by 4% from year-earlier levels, government data showed..Industrial oils demand fell by 9% and for a twelfth month from year-earlier levels.Automobile lube consumption rose by 1% and for the first time in three months from year-earlier levels.Italy’s lube consumption is a useful bellwether for the state of lubricants demand in Europe, whose monthly consumption data is usually released several weeks after Italy.Falling demand in Italy contrasted with firmer lube consumption in other markets like Spain and Poland late last year and early this year.The more mixed demand trends could point to regional consumption bottoming out after several years of contraction.Even so, the ongoing slide in Italy’s lube consumption suggested any recovery would be uneven.The mixed trends incentivized blenders to maintain low inventories and to limit the size of any stock-replenishment plans ahead of a seasonal pick-up in demand from the end of the first quarter.The moves similarly incentivized base oils distributors to maintain lower stocks.The focus on maintaining lower stocks in turn raised the prospect of magnifying the impact of any pick-up in demand in Europe that was stronger than expected.Such a scenario could trigger a stronger rise in requirements for additional base oils supplies and further squeeze the availability of any grades that were already tight.Europe’s services PMI business activity index fell to a four-month low in March, pointing to still-weak economic activity and bolstering lube blenders’ strategy of maintaining low stocks.The region’s manufacturing PMI output index by contrast rose to a thirty-four month high in March amid strong growth in Germany.Any conversion of those preliminary signals into a more marked pick-up in industrial activity could trigger a rise in lubricants consumption over the coming months that is stronger than blenders had planned for..Asia's January lube demand rises.Latin America's Jan lube demand rises
