Paulsboro will be lowering its Group I prices by 30 cents/gal as well, but will not mark down its bright stock price, with the decreases going into effect on Dec. 19.

Meanwhile, both base oil and lubricant suppliers were preparing for reduced activity ahead of the year-end holidays and were hoping to finalize business and contract negotiations during the week. Demand was not expected to pick up in earnest until February or March, when lubricant manufacturers start to prepare inventories for the spring production cycle ahead of the summer driving season. Some sellers were also actively pursuing export business, with increased buying interest noted at destinations such as Brazil. Plentiful supplies were exerting pressure on export prices of Group I and Group II grades as suppliers sought to draw down inventories, with the exception of bright stock, which showed tighter availability. More balanced conditions were supporting fairly steady Group III prices.

Group I
The Group I segment showed lengthening supplies against slowing domestic demand, which exerted downward pressure on pricing and likely led to the posted price adjustments to be implemented this week by ExxonMobil and Paulsboro. The heavy grades were plentiful, and consumption levels have slumped, but bright stock was still a very much sought-after grade and this helped buoy prices. Group I demand for the manufacture of industrial oils and metalworking fluids has decreased on reduced manufacturing rates in the United States, but there was still healthy demand from the export segment, as well as the marine and heavy-duty applications, sources said. This is also a difficult cut to replace and was not in direct competition with Group II cuts.

Buying appetite for base oil imports has grown in Brazil as key producer Petrobras shut down a base oils plant in October for an unplanned turnaround which may be extended beyond the initial assessment. The producer appeared to be able to meet some contract obligations, but a number of customers were not receiving all of the quantities they sought. Due to a tightening of local spot supplies – with demand for bright stock particularly robust – domestic prices have moved up. Some buyers have opted for replacing Group I grades with Group II cuts whenever possible.

Brazilian blenders were trying to locate additional base oil barrels from the U.S. Buyers had delayed commitments, hoping to achieve lower figures, but discussions had intensified over the last few days as participants were hoping to finalize transactions before the year-end holidays.

Economic uncertainties were dampening base oil demand from Mexico, although regular contract cargoes continued to move there as scheduled. Some shipments had been affected by railway and trucking disruptions at the border. These disruptions appeared to be mostly linked to protests by Mexican farmers and truckers in northern Mexico. Railroads had suffered massive backlogs and railcars had been stuck at some locations, leading to transportation delays. However, as some of these issues get resolved, more U.S. volumes are able to move to Mexico, applying downward pressure on prices. Mexican consumers had delayed purchases for as long as possible in hopes of achieving more discounts from U.S. suppliers who were eager to find a home for their barrels ahead of tax assessments at the end of the year.

Group II
Following Chevron’s posted price decrease on its Group II prices on Dec. 2, ExxonMobil has also communicated a posted price decrease of 15 cents/gal on its Group II and Group II+ grades. The adjustments seemed to reflect market fundamentals, with mounting supplies and weaker demand being the main drivers. Chevron had lowered the posted price of its Group II 100R base oil by 30 cents per gallon, and its 220R and 600R by 35 cents/gal with an effective date of Dec. 2, bringing posted prices more in line with actual market levels. The lighter grades enjoyed slightly healthier demand than the heavy grades, which resulted in more plentiful supplies. At the same time, the light grades were exposed to downward pressure from competitively-priced rerefined base oils.

Downward posted price adjustments are not uncommon during the last quarter or first quarter of the new year, as producers strive to reduce inventories. Some suppliers prefer not to adjust prices because they do not believe lower prices would necessarily boost orders when underlying demand is simply not there. While blenders welcomed the posted price decreases, they were concerned that lubricant buyers would argue that base oil values were falling–which was not the case for many accounts–and that this would prompt buyers to request discounts.

Meanwhile, U.S. producers also sought to attract export business into several destinations in Latin America, Europe and Africa. While India had always attracted U.S. Group II cargoes during the last quarter of the year, this year, demand has been lackluster because Indian consumers were holding adequate inventories and consumption levels in general have been weak. Plentiful availability of Group II grades from regional producers in South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and other locations also dampened demand for U.S. cargoes, which were not deemed as competitive.

Rerefiners reported steady domestic demand and sold-out positions for a number of cuts. An upcoming maintenance program in the first part of 2026 was also expected to strain availability since the rerefiner plans to build inventories to fulfill contract obligations during the shutdown.

Group III
Group III prices have stabilized as most import cargoes have found a home, and some transportation disruptions related to railcar and terminal availability have also temporarily tightened some pockets of the market. Nevertheless, there were expectations of additional imported products arriving in the next few weeks, which kept Group III prices teetering on the edge as increased availability could exert downward pressure, particularly at a time when demand was not robust.

While domestic production of Group III grades and rerefining was growing in the U.S., the output was not enough to cover all requirements, and imports are expected to continue to flow from Canada, Asia and the Middle East.

Naphthenics
Naphthenic base oil prices were steady, but select accounts have received discounts, depending on contract terms and other conditions, particularly as some contracts are indexed against diesel prices. A slowdown in demand, particularly of the heavy grades that serve the rubber, tire, grease and process oil segments, were exerting pressure on prices, with conditions not expected to improve significantly until the spring.

The light grades had been enjoying stronger demand so far, but there were signs that it was weakening as was expected for this time of the year. Export activity has been sluggish because consumption in other countries mirrored conditions in the U.S., with suppliers finding fewer outlets for their surplus volumes. Additional price pressure emanated from the paraffinic side as ample supplies competed in some applications with naphthenic oils.

As was the case with some paraffinic suppliers, naphthenic producers held off on making any price adjustments as they did not expect reduced pricing to necessarily trigger more orders during a time when demand and market fundamentals are typically sluggish.

San Joaquin Refining plans to have a three-week routine turnaround at its refinery in California in mid-January and was expected to start building inventories to keep customers supplied during the shutdown, but could limit short-term spot availability.

Crude Oil
Crude oil futures were lower on Wednesday as analysts were factoring in lower geopolitical risk given the possibility of a Russia-Ukraine peace agreement. Crude prices were also under pressure because Opec+ members have ramped up production throughout the year amid slowing global economic growth rates, which could lead to lower crude oil consumption.

Traders were also keeping an eye on a pivotal day for financial markets, as Wednesday was expected to bring a series of crucial economic data releases that could sway market dynamics. The EIA’s Crude Oil Inventories report was expected to shed light on supply and demand dynamics and several U.S. Federal Reserve officials were also scheduled to speak. Their comments will be closely monitored for clues about future monetary policy direction, an article in Investing.com noted. Meanwhile, there were signs that China was accelerating its crude stockpiling as it took advantage of the weaker oil price trend.

• West Texas Intermediate January 2026 futures settled on the Nymex at $55.27 per barrel on Dec. 16, down from $58.25/bbl for front-month futures on Dec. 9.
• Brent futures for February 2026 delivery were trading on the ICE at $59.63/bbl on Dec. 17, down from $62.01/bbl for front-month futures on Dec. 10.
• Louisiana Light Sweet crude wholesale spot prices were hovering at $58.52/bbl on Dec. 15. Spot prices had settled at $60.69/bbl on Dec. 8, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Diesel
Low-sulfur diesel wholesale, Dec. 15 (Dec. 8), EIA
New York Harbor: $2.23 per gallon ($2.35/gal)
Gulf Coast: $2.02/gal ($2.16/gal)
Los Angeles: $2.06/gal ($2.22/gal)

Gabriela Wheeler can be reached directly at gabriela@LubesnGreases.com

LNG Publishing Co. Inc./Lubes’n’Greases shall not be liable for commercial decisions based on the contents of this report.

Posted Paraffinic Base Oil Prices December 17, 2025

(Prices are FOB basis, in U.S. dollars per gallon and U.S. dollars per metric ton).

Archived base oil price reports can be found through this link: https://www.lubesngreases.com/category/base-stocks/other/base-oil-pricing-report/

Historic and current base oil pricing data are available for purchase in Excel format.

*ExxonMobil prices obtained indirectly.
**Rerefiner