Germany’s finished lubricants demand, including process oils, declined 11% in October, as a year-long trend of falling consumption continued, with the steepest declines occuring in hydraulic, machine and metalworking oils, according to government agency data released today.
Lubricant sales in the country decreased to 42,906 metric tons in October, compared to 47,951 tons in the same month last year, Germany’s Federal Office of Economics and Export Control reported.
Consumption of hydraulic oils dropped 50% to 3,438 tons, and machine oil demand fell 42% to 1,254 tons. In the metalworking oils category, non-water miscible oils demand dropped 47% to 478 tons, and demand for water-miscible oils was down 46% to 545 tons. Anti-corrosion oil was down 39% to 101 tons.
Demand for grease for cars experienced a steeper fall, 25%, to 419 tons. Overall grease demand was down only 5% to 1,932 tons.
Transformer oil demand was down 23% at 806 tons.
Smaller decreases occurred in car gear oils, down 2% at 2,790 tons and industrial gear oils, a 7% decrease to 1,519 tons.
The largest volume category, motor oil, was down only 2% to 15,854 tons. The car gear oils category was also down by 2%, to 2,790 tons.
Turbine oil consumption was unchanged at 178 tons.
Among the few bright spots were increased demand for compressor oils, up 32% at 1,020 tons, and automatic transmission fluids, which increased 1% to 4,294 tons. Process oil demand also rose 10% to 8,656 tons.