Base oil exports from South Korea jumped to 428,719 metric tons in August, according to new data from the country’s Customs Service, a 35% increase year to year and the highest monthly total since February of 2023.
Refiners were able to ship so much base oil partly because all four of the nation’s base oil plants are operating after some temporary downtime for maintenance work earlier this year.
The country has not exported more base oil in a month since February of last year, when 445,925 tons were shipped. August was just the third month since then to exceed 400,000 tons.
In August of last year the country exported 316,451 tons of base oil.
South Korea is the world’s largest exporter of API Group III base oils and also produces large amounts of Group II base oil. Cargoes are shipped around the world, largely to markets such as Europe, the United States, China and India.
The Customs Service reported the value of August exports at U.S. $401,597, an 18% increase from $339,472 in August of last year. The percentage jump in value was smaller than for quantity because of tighter base oil margins, especially for Group III oils.
The country imports much smaller quantities of base oil. In August it imported 18,352 tons, down from 24,571 tons. The declared value of those imports was $21,231, compared to $28,947 in August of 2023.