In Asia, domestic markets appear to be in decline, whereas export markets are steady. Europe is exactly the reverse, with domestic trades faring better than export. The United States has been rather subdued this week. U.S. Gulf of Mexico It has been a slow week on the U.S. Gulf to Caribbean market with minimal demand noted. Southbound on the U.S. Gulf to the east coast of South America route has been fairly busy on the small chemical parcels trade, but nonetheless there are several ships that r...

ExxonMobil will no longer use its Esso semi-synthetic motor oil brand in Russia, and will instead offer its better established Mobil brand. Synthetic lubricants comply best with modern engines demands, Yuri Popov, marketing specialist of ExxonMobil Russia said in a press release last month. We believe that consolidation of the companys product assortment under the Mobil brand [in the Russian market] could help end-users choose the right motor oil suitable for their automobile, regardless of the...

Japanese petroleum giant Idemitsu Kosan established a new lubricant sales company in Mexico that is slated to begin operations in June. According to an Idemitsu official release last month, Idemitsu Lubes Mexico will have an initial base of U.S. $1.5 million in capital and start with 12 employees, focused mainly on sales. The new branch, which will be Idemitsus first direct venture into the Mexican lube market, has set an initial lubes sales target of 10,000 kiloliters per year. This is project...

Heritage-Crystal Cleans oil business, including oil collection and refining, reported $25.2 million in sales for the quarter ending March 23, up from $20 million in the year-earlier quarter. As a whole, Elgin, Ill.-based Heritage-Crystal Clean posted a $420,000 loss in the first quarter, on $60 million in sales. That is down from $270,000 in net income on sales of $50.5 million, in 2012s first quarter. The company does not break out net income for its oil business segment. During the first qua...

Total will expand and upgrade its lubricant blending plant in Durban, South Africa, as part of a plan to increase its market share in that country and to boost sales in neighboring nations. The changes to the blending plant are part of a broader project that includes construction of fuel storage space. We see this as a major vote of confidence in South Africa, as well as in other countries in southern Africa, as some of the additional lubricants we will be blending will be exported to South Af...

Desmond King will become president of lubricant additives manufacturer Chevron Oronite Sept. 1, following the Aug. 31 retirement of Ron Kiskis after 13 years as president. King is currently president of Chevron Technology Ventures, and is the former managing director and CEO of Caltex Australia Ltd. Jirong Xiao will become the vice president of sales and marketing, and Barbara Smith will become the vice president of products and technology. The changes will become effective June 1, when Colin ...

Fuchs Petrolub unveiled a slight dip in first quarter sales and little change in net income over last years first quarter numbers, while S-Oil reported steep plunges in revenue and operating income. Revenue for S-Oil shrank 31.3 percent to 432.8 billion South Korean won (U.S. $394.2 million) for the quarter ending March 31, from 630.1 billion won in the year-earlier period. Operating income for the South Korean base oil refiner plummeted 86.6 percent to 14.2 billion won, compared to 105.9 billi...

A Freedonia Group study forecasts U.S. demand for lubricant additives to grow 4.3 percent annually to nearly $3.9 billion in 2017. That compares to a 4.4 percent annual growth rate from 2007 to 2012. A recovery in volume demand combined with a continued shift to new, high performance additive products is expected to boost market value, according to Lubricant Additives, a new study from market research firm Freedonia Group. Demand for additives in automotive applications is expected to rise, t...