Indonesia January base oil imports fall

Indonesia’s base oil imports fell in January to a five-month low amid a drop in shipments from northeast Asia.

But the volume remained elevated compared with imports before the second half of last year.

Total imports of 40,410t in January fell from 46,970t the previous month, government data showed. The volume was the lowest since last August.

Even so, import volumes of 226,270t during the five months to January were up 46pc from 155,350t during the same period a year earlier.

They also exceeded imports of 185,760t during the first six months of last year.

The pick-up in shipments from September coincided with a gradual easing of Covid-19 restrictions in the country from end-August.

The recent and sustained rise in imports mostly reflected firming domestic demand for premium-grade base oils.

Indonesia is home to a Group I base oil plant in Cilacap and a Group III base oil unit in Dumai. But with no Group II production capacity, it relies on imports to cover these requirements.

The country’s automobile demand has surged since the first quarter of last year. Auto sales have exceeded two-year-earlier levels since December.