China’s paraffinic base oils output stayed low in June even as it rose to a fifteen-month high.Output of Group I, Group II and Group III base oils combined rose to close to 389,000t in June, up from around 388,000t the previous month, OilChem China data showed.The firmer output lifted base oils production to 1.13mn t in the second quarter of the year. The volume was up from 957,000t during the first three months of the year.It was up 12pc from 997,590t during the second quarter of last year, when lockdowns in key commercial centres like Shanghai slashed lubricants and base oils demand.Production levels remained well below base oils output of 1.60mn t in the second quarter of 2021, when there were no such lockdowns.The muted rise in output partly reflected the impact of plant maintenance work in China during the second quarter of the year. It also reflected weak demand..China June Grp II base oil output steady.Base Oil News stories and analysis also available on ICIS platform
