Thailand’s lube demand rose to a fifteen-month high in June on the back of a surge in consumption of passenger-car engine oils.The rise in demand added to signs of firm lube consumption throughout southeast Asia at the end of the second quarter of the year.Firm regional demand raised the prospect of leaving blenders with balanced-to-lower stocks at the start of the third quarter of the year, when consumption typically faces a seasonal slowdown.Thailand’s total lube consumption of 44,000 kilolitres (39,000 tonnes) in June rose from 42,700 kilolitres the previous month and by 34% from year-earlier levels, government data showed.Demand also exceeded consumption volumes in the month of March, when lube demand typically peaks for the year.Lube demand rose in June mostly because of an 18% rise in consumption of passenger-car motor oils (PCMO) to the highest in more than a decade.The surge in PCMO consumption coincided with an ongoing rise in the country’s international tourist arrivals.PCMO consumption is typically more reflective of activity in the services sector, and heavy-duty engine oils (HDEO) in the industrial sector.Consumption of HDEO rose at a slower 5% pace in June.The trend lifted PCMO’s share of Thailand’s lube consumption to 50% of the total for the first time this year.Firmer-than-usual lube consumption in markets like Thailand provided regional refiners with growing outlets for their supplies of premium-grade base oils.The surge in Thailand’s PCMO consumption raised the prospect of adding to the country’s requirements for those premium-grade supplies.Shell Company of Thailand was the country’s largest lube supplier in June for a second month with a share of more than 33% of the total.PTT Oil and Retail was the second largest.Thailand’s consumption of domestic base oils also rose in June, but at a slower 19% pace.Domestic base oils sales also lagged the 29% rise in Thailand’s base oils imports in June.The dynamic added to signs of rising domestic consumption of premium-grade base oils and raised the prospect of growing surplus volumes of domestic base oils for shipment to overseas markets.Thailand’s base oils exports instead dipped to a three-month low in June as refiners maintained lower output levels.The drop in exports compounded the tight availability of Group I base oils in the Asia-Pacific market this year. .Thailand’s June output falls, imports rise
Thailand’s lube demand rose to a fifteen-month high in June on the back of a surge in consumption of passenger-car engine oils.The rise in demand added to signs of firm lube consumption throughout southeast Asia at the end of the second quarter of the year.Firm regional demand raised the prospect of leaving blenders with balanced-to-lower stocks at the start of the third quarter of the year, when consumption typically faces a seasonal slowdown.Thailand’s total lube consumption of 44,000 kilolitres (39,000 tonnes) in June rose from 42,700 kilolitres the previous month and by 34% from year-earlier levels, government data showed.Demand also exceeded consumption volumes in the month of March, when lube demand typically peaks for the year.Lube demand rose in June mostly because of an 18% rise in consumption of passenger-car motor oils (PCMO) to the highest in more than a decade.The surge in PCMO consumption coincided with an ongoing rise in the country’s international tourist arrivals.PCMO consumption is typically more reflective of activity in the services sector, and heavy-duty engine oils (HDEO) in the industrial sector.Consumption of HDEO rose at a slower 5% pace in June.The trend lifted PCMO’s share of Thailand’s lube consumption to 50% of the total for the first time this year.Firmer-than-usual lube consumption in markets like Thailand provided regional refiners with growing outlets for their supplies of premium-grade base oils.The surge in Thailand’s PCMO consumption raised the prospect of adding to the country’s requirements for those premium-grade supplies.Shell Company of Thailand was the country’s largest lube supplier in June for a second month with a share of more than 33% of the total.PTT Oil and Retail was the second largest.Thailand’s consumption of domestic base oils also rose in June, but at a slower 19% pace.Domestic base oils sales also lagged the 29% rise in Thailand’s base oils imports in June.The dynamic added to signs of rising domestic consumption of premium-grade base oils and raised the prospect of growing surplus volumes of domestic base oils for shipment to overseas markets.Thailand’s base oils exports instead dipped to a three-month low in June as refiners maintained lower output levels.The drop in exports compounded the tight availability of Group I base oils in the Asia-Pacific market this year. .Thailand’s June output falls, imports rise
