Taiwan’s base oils exports rose to a six-month high in July, adding to signs of a rebound in shipments from the Asia-Pacific region at a time of year when demand faced a seasonal slowdown.Asia’s base oils prices edged down relative to prices in markets like China and India in recent weeks.But they resumed a steady rise relative to Singapore gasoil prices, suggesting that supply-demand fundamentals remained relatively firm even with the rise in regional exports.Taiwan’s total base oils exports of 57,000 tonnes in July rose from 31,500 tonnes the previous month and more than doubled from year-earlier levels, government data showed.Light-grade base oils accounted for close to 60% of the total volume, up from less than half the total in June.Base oils exports of less than 14,000 tonnes to China in July accounted for less than a quarter of Taiwan’s total shipments for a second month.The share was down from close to half of Taiwan’s total exports in 2023.The dwindling share of shipments to China coincided with the country's decision to remove tariff concessions on base oil shipments from Taiwan from mid-June.The move cut the competitiveness of Taiwan’s shipments relative to domestic supplies in China and relative to shipments from competing suppliers in Asia.The dwindling benefit of moving shipments to China instead boosted the attraction of increasing supplies to other markets.Taiwan’s base oil exports to southeast Asia rose to a multi-year high of more than 21,000 tonnes in July. The volume was up from an already-high 17,700 tonnes the previous month.Shipments of 14,800 tonnes to India in July were the highest in more than a year, while shipments to the UAE resumed after a two-month pause.The change in trade flows and renewed focus on those other markets raised the prospect of adding to competition among regional refiners for market share in those outlets..China’s July base oils output falls.Taiwan’s June base oils exports fall.Asia base oils supply outlook: Week of 12 Aug
