It has been a much quieter week throughout Europe. The recovery in the U.S. market appears to have stalled, with a large number of sophisticated vessels laying idle. The situation in Asia is stable, but is far from perfect.-by Adrian Brown

SK Lubricants is reviewing the possibility of entering a joint venture with global partners in order to develop another base oil plant abroad.

Yushiro Chemical Industry Co. and American metalworking fluid supplier QualiChem Inc. announced an agreement Tuesday for Yushiro to acquire a stake in QualiChem and for the companies to help each other expand in different markets.

Narrowing base oil margins caused weak to poor second-quarter results for SK Lubricants, S-Oil and the Hyundai Oilbank-Shell joint venture. GP Petroleums also had lower profits for the period ended June 30, while earnings rose at Gulf Oil Lubricants India Ltd. and Savita Oil Technologies.

Editors at Lube Reports sister publication, LubesnGreases magazine, have just capped off a decade of producing our yearly Lubricants Industry Factbook. The 10th edition of this valuable guide is packed with eye-opening information about lubricant industry trends, statistics and standards.