Asia’s lube demand is likely to peak in the month of March on the back of a seasonal rise in consumption in markets like India and Japan.Consumption is then likely to fall in April and in the second quarter compared with the first three months of the year.The seasonal pick-up in demand would coincide maintenance work and unexpected plant shutdowns affecting all base oils grades in the region during the first quarter of the year.Similar supply-demand dynamics have often triggered a rise in regional base oils prices relative to feedstock and competing fuel prices during the first few months of each year, including last year.Asia’s lube demand is likely to rise to close to 2.50mn t in the first quarter of the year, up from less than 2.30mn t during the previous three months, according to the Baseoilnews short-term outlook.The volume excludes demand in China, where lube consumption is also likely to rise strongly in the month of March after the lunar new year holidays.Lube consumption is then likely to fall back to less than 2.25mn t in the second quarter of the year..Asia’s November lube demand mixed
