U.S. markets have gone into temporary hibernation. European coastal markets have been rather flat this week as well, while Asia has slowed down in early preparation for the New Year.-by Adrian Brown

U.S. lubricant distributor consolidation continued as Tennessee-based Parman Energy Group announced an agreement to buy the Chevron-branded lubes business of Lube-Tech & Partners, which will continue to be a lubricant distributor in the upper Midwest.

Lubricant additive volume demand in the United States declined 0.3 percent between 2016 and 2017 to 2.1 billion pounds, according to the American Chemistry Councils Specialty Chemicals Report released last month.

Consumers continued to trade up to higher priced synthetic motor oil in place of cheaper conventional oil, and inflation caused transmission fluid prices to increase, NPD Group concluded, based on tracking of U.S. automotive aftermarket industry sales in 2017.