India’s imports of light and heavy-grade Group II base oils fell to a three-year low in June, speeding up a drawdown of the country’s stocks.The drop in imports contrasted with a rise in India’s lube consumption in June and plant maintenance work in the country in June and July.Firmer demand and a drop in domestic base oils output likely added to buyers’ need to tap their inventories.The arrival of a swathe of Group II base oils shipments in India in April and May triggered a surge in those inventories, and a subsequent pull-back in demand as buyers sought to consume the stocks.The slump in Group II imports in June reflected that pull-back.Imports of light and heavy-grade Group II base oils fell to less than 65,000 tonnes in June to the lowest since mid-2021, provisional customs data showed.The low volume helped to balance out higher-than-usual imports of more than 110,000 tonnes in April and in May.The contraction was still unusually steep.The 33% fall in Group II imports in June from year-earlier levels outpaced the 2% drop in India’s total imports.The steep contraction cut their share of India’s imports to around 21% of the total. The share was down from around 30-35% of total imports during most of the previous twelve months.The slowdown mostly reflected a slump in shipments from Singapore, as well as Taiwan and Saudi Arabia.Imports of Group II base oils from South Korea also fell, but less steeply.A narrowing spread between CFR India and FOB NE Asia Group II base oils prices during most of the second quarter of the year curbed the attraction of moving shipments to India.The price spread widened in recent weeks but remained much narrower than during the first quarter of the year.The still-narrow spread raised the prospect of extending a slowdown in shipments to India well into the third quarter of the year. .India's June base oils imports fall.India’s June lube demand rises
