India's base oil imports rose by 33pc on the year to 1.54mn t in the first half of the country's 2024-25 fiscal year, between April and September, data from GTT show.
- Blenders likely imported more cargoes owing to a decrease in domestic base oil production caused by plant issues and maintenances.
- This happened despite a slowdown in India's economic growth. The country's GDP is estimated to have grown by 6pc in April-September, compared with 8.2pc in the same period in the previous year, government data show.
- Vehicle sales in the country reached 1.31mn units between April and September, a 12.5pc increase from the previous year, according to data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam). This likely boosted demand for finished lubricant.
- Base oil imports in September rose for the second consecutive month to 236,427t, as demand increased towards the end of the monsoon season.
- South Korea continued to be the top supplier to India, with imports reaching 115,487t in September, an 81pc increase from the previous year.
| India base oils imports | t | ||||
| Sep'24 | m-o-m ± % | y-o-y ± % | Apr-Sep FY24/25 | y-o-y ± % | |
| South Korea | 115,487 | 29.9 | 80.7 | 648,412 | 63.4 |
| Singapore | 33,356 | -4.8 | -31.0 | 215,775 | 35.2 |
| Spain | 22,896 | 177.6 | 201.3 | 80,309 | 71.0 |
| Saudi Arabia | 20,917 | 21.6 | 82.1 | 120,738 | 11.2 |
| Qatar | 11,047 | 594.3 | 1,235.8 | 78,950 | 41.3 |
| Total | 236,427 | 11.8 | 22.1 | 1,537,599 | 33.2 |
| Source: GTT | |||||
| Total includes all countries, not just those listed | |||||
