Italy’s lube demand fell in November for the sixth time in seven months, compounding a seasonal slowdown in consumption at the end of the year.Lube consumption of 33,300 tonnes in November fell from close to 35,000 tonnes in October and by 3% from year-earlier levels, government data showed.Demand fell as industrial oils consumption extended its slide for a ninth month, countering support from firmer automobile lube demand.Italy’s lubricants consumption is a useful bellwether for the state of Europe's lube market.The region’s lube demand trends are typically similar to Italy, whose consumption data is usually released several weeks before other markets.The fall in Italy’s lube consumption in November duly raised the prospect of a further drop in demand in the rest of Europe.The ongoing slide in lube demand incentivized blenders to maintain low stocks and to procure small volumes more frequently.The ongoing slide in demand also raised the prospect of magnifying the size of a seasonal drop in lube consumption in the month of December.Falling lube demand coincided with blenders’ typical moves to cut inventories before year-end, compounding the drop in demand for base oils feedstock supplies.But blenders’ already-lower stocks curbed the need and size of such moves to trim inventories.More muted moves to cut stocks could conversely cushion the drop in demand.The same strategy of keeping low stocks could also limit the size of any subsequent pick-up in blenders’ demand for replenishment supplies at the start of this year.Scant signs of any bottoming-out of Europe’s lube consumption boosted the attraction of maintaining that strategy..Asia’s November lube demand mixed.Brazil’s Nov base oils supply exceeds demand.Argentina’s Nov base oils supply lags demand
