Pakistan’s base oils supply stayed firm in June, with domestic output rising and imports getting a boost from a surge in shipments from the US.The shipments could reflect one-off arbitrage supplies.The alternative, of more regular flows from the US, would add to competition with South Korea and Singapore for a key outlet for Group II heavy-grade base oils.Pakistan relies on imports to cover all of its Group II requirements. That reliance contrasts with India, where the start-up of new premium-grade production capacity is likely to cut that country’s demand for overseas supplies.Group II heavy grades also account for an unusually large share of Pakistan’s total imports.The dynamic adds to the country’s importance for key Group II producers like Singapore and South Korea that rely on overseas markets to absorb most of their supplies.Pakistan’s imports came to around 20,300 tonnes in June and more than 72,000 tonnes in the second quarter of the year, provisional customs data showed.The quarterly volume weas the highest since first-half 2022 and partly reflected the delivery of more than 15,000 tonnes from the US in May and June combined.The volume compared with total shipments of less than 2,000 tonnes from the US throughout all of last year.All the US volumes consisted of Group II heavy grades.Pakistan's June imports of more than 11,000 tonnes from the US exceeded the total volume from South Korea and Singapore combined that month.Those two countries accounted for more than 75% of Pakistan’s imports in 2022 and 2023.An extension of those flows from the US to Pakistan is unlikely over the coming months, with US supply tighter and the arbitrage shut.That dynamic could change later in the year when US demand typically faces a seasonal slowdown and a build-up of surplus supplies.Pakistan’s firm imports coincided with a rise in domestic base oils output in June to the second-highest level in more than a year.Total supply, or imports and domestic output combined, duly rose to more than 32,000 tonnes in June and 107,000 tonnes in the second quarter.The volume was up from less than 90,000 tonnes in each of the previous three quarters.The rise in supply coincided with a 6% rise in Pakistan’s lube demand in the second quarter from year-earlier levels.Demand rose against the backdrop of reviving automobile sales and increasingly firm industrial production growth in the country in recent months..S Korea’s June base oil exports to UAE, India fall.Singapore’s June base oils exports fall.US’ May base oils/lube exports fall
Pakistan’s base oils supply stayed firm in June, with domestic output rising and imports getting a boost from a surge in shipments from the US.The shipments could reflect one-off arbitrage supplies.The alternative, of more regular flows from the US, would add to competition with South Korea and Singapore for a key outlet for Group II heavy-grade base oils.Pakistan relies on imports to cover all of its Group II requirements. That reliance contrasts with India, where the start-up of new premium-grade production capacity is likely to cut that country’s demand for overseas supplies.Group II heavy grades also account for an unusually large share of Pakistan’s total imports.The dynamic adds to the country’s importance for key Group II producers like Singapore and South Korea that rely on overseas markets to absorb most of their supplies.Pakistan’s imports came to around 20,300 tonnes in June and more than 72,000 tonnes in the second quarter of the year, provisional customs data showed.The quarterly volume weas the highest since first-half 2022 and partly reflected the delivery of more than 15,000 tonnes from the US in May and June combined.The volume compared with total shipments of less than 2,000 tonnes from the US throughout all of last year.All the US volumes consisted of Group II heavy grades.Pakistan's June imports of more than 11,000 tonnes from the US exceeded the total volume from South Korea and Singapore combined that month.Those two countries accounted for more than 75% of Pakistan’s imports in 2022 and 2023.An extension of those flows from the US to Pakistan is unlikely over the coming months, with US supply tighter and the arbitrage shut.That dynamic could change later in the year when US demand typically faces a seasonal slowdown and a build-up of surplus supplies.Pakistan’s firm imports coincided with a rise in domestic base oils output in June to the second-highest level in more than a year.Total supply, or imports and domestic output combined, duly rose to more than 32,000 tonnes in June and 107,000 tonnes in the second quarter.The volume was up from less than 90,000 tonnes in each of the previous three quarters.The rise in supply coincided with a 6% rise in Pakistan’s lube demand in the second quarter from year-earlier levels.Demand rose against the backdrop of reviving automobile sales and increasingly firm industrial production growth in the country in recent months..S Korea’s June base oil exports to UAE, India fall.Singapore’s June base oils exports fall.US’ May base oils/lube exports fall