Turkey’s base oils output stayed unusually low in July as intermittent supply and high domestic prices incentivized buyers to procure more supplies from overseas markets.Output of 6,040t in July rose from 2,040t the previous month, government data showed..But production fell for the ninth time in ten months from year-earlier levels, cutting total output to 55,340t in the first seven months of the year.The volume was down more than 35pc from almost 88,000t during the same period last year.Excluding 2020, it was the lowest for that seven-month period in more than a decade.Output fell because of frequent plant shutdowns during the year.Demand fell amid uncertainty about availability of supply. Domestic prices for the suppies also surged in response to rising regional cargo prices in first-half 2022 and the steep depreciation of the country’s currency.Buyers instead increasingly turned to supplies of Russian origin in recent months to cover more of their Group I requirements..Turkey's July Group I base oils imports hold firm.Weak demand in turn incentivized Turkey’s sole producer to continue to limit production.The depreciation of Turkey’s currency in 2021 had incentivized the producer to boost its exports in US dollar terms. Its exports surged last year to their highest in more than 15 years.That incentive extended into this year as the country’s currency weakened further and high inflation added to the slowdown in domestic demand.But its exports fell to less than 1,000t in the first seven months of the year. It had exported more than 22,000t of base oils during the same period last year.Lower base oils output cut the volume available for export.The availability of supplies of Russian origin at competitive prices complicated further the feasibility of any such shipments to overseas markets like Mideast Gulf..Turkey July premium-grade imports fall
