Flint Hills Resources, Phillips 66, SK and Paulsboro rounded up the most recent string of price increases by lifting base oil postings during the week.
In the API Group I category, Paulsboro raised its postings by 20 cents per gallon on June 8, mirroring the increases implemented by fellow Group I producers ExxonMobil, HollyFrontier and Calumet.
Most Group II producers increased posted prices by 20 cents/gal across the board, but the odd man out seemed to be Flint Hills Resources, who lifted its Group II oils by 22 cents on June 9.
In the Group II+/III segment, Phillips 66 tacked two dimes on its base oils as of June 9, and SK marked up its products by 10 cents/gal with the same effective date.
Industry insiders conjectured that SKs Group II+/III increase was more moderate than that of Phillips 66 because its prices were already hovering at steeper levels before the price movements.
On the naphthenic side, prices underwent no changes this week, following recent price initiatives from Ergon, Calumet, Cross Oil, San Joaquin Refining and other suppliers, which raised light and mid-viscosity pale oils by 15 cents and heavier cuts by 20 cents/gal in late May.
The upward price trend observed both on the naphthenic and paraffinic fronts was fueled by tightening supply, verdant demand, a healthy appetite for exports, and planned and unplanned production outages in previous months.
Several large cargoes of U.S. base oils were said to be on their way to Asia, and there has been keen interest from Mexico and South America as well, sources said.
Given the snug domestic supplies and the need to meet contractual obligations, few sellers are able to offer extra volumes for spot business, sources added.
Upstream, crude oil futures slipped on Tuesday, pressured by investor concerns over Britains vote next week on whether to leave the European Union. If Britain voted to leave the EU, a prospect dubbed Brexit, investors fear the bloc could slip into recession, which in turn could undermine oil demand, Reuters reported.
This overshadowed gains in previous sessions that had been supported by an upbeat forecast from the International Energy Agency, showing that demand growth was healthy, and the oil market was essentially balanced.
West Texas Intermediate futures settled on the CME/Nymex at $48.49 per barrel on June 14, down $1.87 per bbl from the June 7 settlement of $50.36 per bbl.
Light Louisiana Sweet wholesale spot prices closed at $50.84 per bbl on June 13, compared to $51.46 per bbl on June 6, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Brent was trading at $49.83 per bbl on the CME on June 14, down $1.61 per bbl from $51.44 per bbl a week earlier.
Historic U.S. posted base oil prices and WTI and Brent crude spot prices are available for purchase in Excel format.