South Africa’s January base oil imports slide

Shipments fall to five-month low

Photo by Homemade Media on Unsplash

Published on:

15 Mar 2022, 5:14 am

South Africa’s base oil imports fell in January to a five-year low amid a slump in shipments from the Netherlands.

Base oil imports fell to 10,590 kilolitres (9,380t) in January, government data showed. Imports fell from more than 21,500kl the previous month and from more typical levels of around 28,000 kl/month in 2021.

Imports extend slide

South African Revenues Service

Base oil imports slowed even amid signs of firmer automobile demand and steadier industrial production in the country in recent months. The country’s automobile sales rose in February for the 11^th time in 12 months.

February SA car sales raise industry spirits

The drop in base oil shipments mostly reflected a slide in supplies from the Netherlands to less than 3,000kl in January. Typical import volumes from that country had mostly held above the 10,000 kl/month level in 2021.

Imports fell despite high base oil production levels in the Netherlands in the fourth quarter of last year.

South Africa’s base oil imports from the US also slowed sharply in January.

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