December xxxx saw a surprising turn in the Saudi Arabian Base Oil market. After a period of climbing prices in the previous month due to increased exports from Yanbu and Jeddah, coupled with inclining international costs, Group I Base Oil, a key ingredient in lubricants, took a sudden plunge. This expected drop was associated with Luberef, a key supplier of Saudi Arabia, trading their cargos at discounted prices to attract buyers, particularly from the UAE during this time frame. While the December discounts may have cleared inventories, the shipping issues leave a cloud of uncertainty over January&#xx;s prices.
As per the recent assessment, the attraction of discounted deals and inventory clearance swept through the Saudi Arabian Base Oil market in December, sending prices falling despite a prior uptrend to settle at USD xxxx/MT Base Oil Group-III xcSt FOB Dammam with a drop of x.xx compared...
