India’s Group II base oils imports slipped in March on the back of a dip in shipments of light-grade supplies.Imports of Group II heavy grades stayed higher than usual.Total Group II base oils imports of close to 100,000 tonnes in March fell from more than 110,000 tonnes in each of the previous two months, provisional customs data showed.The March volume was similar to typical monthly levels in 2024.The slowdown from February mostly reflected a fall in shipments of light-grade base oils to a seven-month low.Group II heavy-grade imports stayed higher than usual even as they edged down from the previous month..Shipments of Group I heavy neutrals also rose in March, keeping India’s total imports of Group I and Group II heavy neutrals at unusually high levels for a second month.India’s imported Group II heavy-grade cargo prices held increasingly firm so far in April even with the pick-up in imports of heavy neutrals.The firm prices pointed to ongoing demand for additional volumes and raised the prospect of more shipments moving to India in the coming months.The firm prices could also support stronger buying interest in additional supplies of Group I heavy neutrals.Those supplies accounted for around 33% of India’s total imports of Group I and Group II heavy neutrals in March.The share was up from an already-high 27% in February and around 21% in 2024.The growing share of Group I supplies coincided with an increasingly wide discount of CFR India Group I heavy-neutrals prices to Group II prices.The discount continued to widen in April to the steepest level since 2021.The wide Group I discount, signs of ready availability of supplies, and increasingly high Group II heavy-grade prices raised the prospect of boosting further the share of Group I imports.Any such trend would help to sustain India’s imports of heavy neutrals at unusually high levels.The dynamic could reflect lower domestic heavy-grade supply because of plant maintenance work.It could alternatively point to rising domestic demand for heavy-grade supplies, or to growing inventories of the grade..India’s March base oils imports rise.S Korea's March exports to India rise
