Singapore’s base oil imports hit four-year high in Sep

Spanish Market: Oil products
03/11/25

Singapore's base oil imports increased for the third consecutive month to reach 101,000t in September — the highest level since September 2021 — boosted by increased supplies from the US and UK, according to data from Global Trade Tracker (GTT).

The US and UK emerged as the top two suppliers to Singapore, accounting for 23pc and 13pc respectively of total Singaporean imports in September.
Shipments from the Netherlands fell on the month, but remained higher than the five-year monthly average of 8,500t.
Combined volumes from the US, UK and the Netherlands made up 34pc of total imports to the city state in January-September, up from 19pc over the same period in 2024. The arbitrage for cargoes from the West remains closed, and it comes as a key refiner in Singapore began shipments from its new plant.
Stronger base oil demand was also supported by higher factory activity. The purchasing managers' index (PMI) edged up from 50 in August to 50.1 in September, according to data from the Singapore Institute of Purchasing and Materials Management. A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion.
Manufacturing output was up by 16pc on the year, and up by 26pc on a seasonally adjusted month-on-month basis, data from the Economic Development Board show.

By Tara Tang

Singapore's base oil imports					t
	Sep'25	m-o-m ± %	y-o-y ± %	Jan-Sep'25	y-o-y ± %
US	23,377.0	146,006.3	157.0	75,117.0	9.2
UK	13,452.0	83.8	NA	39,686.0	3,077.4
Qatar	11,050.0	-44.8	-10.7	153,378.0	24.7
Netherlands	9,946.0	-57.2	125.1	95,025.0	478.4
South Korea	10,372.0	179.3	30.2	69,199.0	-15.6
Total	100,948.0	48.1	64.3	624,775.0	35.3
— GTT
Total includes all countries, not just those listed

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29/01/26

Brazil groups seek fossil fuel phase-out: Correction

Corrects date the government will deliver the new plan in the 4th paragraph. Story originally published 28 January. Sao Paulo, 29 January (Argus) — Brazil's path to phase out fossil fuels needs to focus on the power and industrial sectors and include ambitious goals that can reduce risks, preserve energy security, ensure tariff fairness and maintain economic competitiveness, climate umbrella group Observatorio do Clima said. Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on 8 December asked the energy, environment and finance ministries to draft a resolution by 3 February mapping out the phase-out of fossil fuels. He previously called for the creation of an international plan to move away from fossil fuels during a leaders' summit only a few days before November UN Cop 30 climate summit in northern Brazil. But the call did not make it to the summit's final decision despite backing from more than 80 countries . Instead, the Cop 30 presidency pledged to create a roadmap on the issue outside of official negotiations. An initial draft could be ready by April , when Colombia is set to host a global summit on the topic , according to Cop 30 president Andre Correa do Lago. Brazil's finance ministry told Argus that it is working on the roadmap draft alongside the environment and energy ministries, as well as Lula's chief of staff, and that it will deliver it on 6 February. The Observatorio do Clima's proposal includes 46 recommendations laid out in three sections: energy policy and transition guidelines; financing and economic fundamentals; and governance guidelines. The recommendations include: Replacing thermoelectric power plants with renewable-powered sources whenever possible, as well as avoiding contracting new fossil-fueled facilities; Fully banning hydraulic fracturing; Gradually reducing natural gas and oil usage in industry by replacing them with alternative fuel sources such as green hydrogen, biomass and electricity; Discontinuing investments in carbon capture and storage projects; A plan to end crude block auctions; Adding fuels such as biomethane, biodiesel, ethanol and hydrogen to Brazil's transport sector; Eliminating fossil fuel subsidies; Increasing state-controlled Petrobras' spending on renewables; Establishing a national fund to finance the energy transition. The plan was published and officially forwarded to the government on Wednesday, Observatorio do Clima's public policy coordinator Suely Araujo said. The group has held informal talks with government officials, she added. It will serve as both a guideline to the Brazilian government as well as to the Cop 30 presidency and the Colombia conference, WWF Brazil's energy transition lead Ricardo Fujii said. The group also plans to bring the roadmap to the meeting of Brazil's energy transition forum, which will be held this week. But phasing out fossil fuels could seem to run counter to Brazil's plans to keep increasing crude production. It produces around 4mn b/d of crude , making it one of the 10 largest producers globally, according to its hydrocarbon regulator ANP. Further, Brazil plans to expand crude output to 5.3mn b/d by 2030, according to energy research bureau Epe, hinging on new exploratory frontiers such as the southern Pelotas basin and the environmentally sensitive equatorial margin. By Lucas Parolin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Valero ramps up Venezuelan oil purchases: Update

29/01/26

Valero ramps up Venezuelan oil purchases: Update

Adds info on Venezuela oil purchases; recasts lead. Houston, 29 January (Argus) — US independent refiner Valero has ramped up purchases of Venezuelan crude and expects it to be a major heavy feedstock this quarter, the company said today. Valero has purchased Venezuelan crude from the three authorized sellers, said vice president of crude and feedstocks supply and trading Randy Hawkins on a fourth-quarter earnings call. The Venezuelan oil is expected to make up "a pretty large part" of Valero's heavy crude diet as the company moves into February and March, Hawkins said. The refiner did not disclose pricing but said that heavy crude differentials in general were favorable. Venezuelan crude is replacing various other grades, including heavy crude from Latin America and western Canada, Valero said. "The exports that are coming out of Venezuela tend to be very heavy, high sulfur... and that fits [Valero's] configuration pretty well," Hawkins said. Valero ran as much as 240,000 b/d of Venezuelan heavy crude in the past before US sanctions, but that was prior to installing a new coker at its 380,000 b/d Port Arthur, Texas, refinery in 2023 which increased processing capacity for heavy crude, Hawkins said. Now, Valero can run Venezuelan crude "substantially north of that number", he said. Market sources said on 23 January that Valero purchased an Aframax shipment of heavy sour Venezuelan crude. Trading firms Trafigura and Vitol were approved by the US government to market unsanctioned Venezuelan crude following the US capture of former Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro on 3 January. Both firms were heard recently offering Venezuelan cargoes to the US market at a $9/bl discount to Ice Brent on a delivered basis. Market sources said most cargoes on offer to the US Gulf coast were for Aframax vessels, and deals were expected to continue to be struck at deep discounts to Ice Brent. Chevron is also authorized to sell Venezuelan crude. Chevron operates in Venezuela with state-owned PdV under a special waiver from US sanctions and imported about 120,000 b/d of crude from Venezuela to the US in December, according to data from Kpler ship tracking. US secretary of state Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that the US administration wants Venezuela's state-owned PdV to eventually resume selling crude and refined products directly, instead of relying on US-mandated sales through Trafigura and Vitol. Record throughputs in 4Q Valero also reported record crude throughputs in the fourth quarter of 2025 as well as higher profits. Refining throughput volumes averaged 3.1mn b/d in the fourth quarter, while Valero's refining segment reported operating profit of $1.7bn, up from $437mn in the fourth quarter of 2024. The company reported an average refining margin of $13.61/bl in the fourth quarter, up from $8.44/bl in the fourth quarter of 2024. The company paid an average of about $59/bl for US benchmark WTI crude in fourth quarter, down from about $70/bl in the year-earlier period. Valero also said its fluid catalytic cracker (FCC) unit optimization project at the 215,000 b/d St Charles refinery in Norco, Louisiana, is on track to start operations in the second half of 2026. The project will allow the refinery to increase the yield of high-value products including alkylate. The project is estimated to cost $230mn. Valero is preparing to start idling processing units at its 145,000 b/d refinery in Benicia, California, in February as part of a previously announced plan to idle, restructure or cease refinery operations at the facility, which is in the San Francisco area. Valero plans to import additional gasoline volumes in the near term to meet contractual supply obligations. The company said on Thursday that its operating expenses in 2025 included $50mn for employee retention and separation costs related to Benicia. By Eunice Bridges Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Brazil central bank holds target rate at 15pc

28/01/26

Brazil central bank holds target rate at 15pc

Sao Paulo, 28 January (Argus) — Brazil's central bank held its target rate unchanged at 15pc in its first meeting of 2026, citing an uncertain global environment due to US policies and their repercussions on global financial markets. The decision to hold the rate, announced on Wednesday, follows a string of similar decisions since June 2025, when the central bank wrapped up a series of seven increases that raised the rate from a cyclical low of 10.5pc in September 2024, the central bank said. Domestically, economic activity appears to be moderating while the labor market is showing signs of resilience. Headline and underlying inflation measures continue to soften, but still remain above the inflation target. Brazil's headline inflation decelerated to an annual 4.26pc in December. Still, inflation expectations, as calculated by the bank's Focus survey, remain above target, at 4pc and 3.8pc for 2026 and 2027. The policy committee continues to monitor the impacts of the geopolitical context on Brazilian inflation, as well as how evolving fiscal policy impacts monetary policy and financial assets. Most financial market participants expected the central bank to hold at the first meeting of 2026 but project a 50 percentage point cut in March, bank BTG Pactual says. By João Curi Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US naphtha displaces Russian flows to Venezuela

28/01/26

US naphtha displaces Russian flows to Venezuela

New York, 28 January (Argus) — Naphtha shipments to Venezuela loading in January have come entirely from US Gulf coast suppliers, reversing the previous Russia-dominated trade for the diluent needed to transport Venezuelan crude after US intervention. Ports in Houston, Beaumont and Corpus Christi, Texas, have shipped between 970,000-1.22mn bl of naphtha to Venezuela so far this month, according to Kpler and Vortexa data, compared to 560,000-1.21mn bl for the last three months of 2025, when Chevron was the only oil major with a US government waiver to trade with Venezuela. Vitol has joined commodity trader Trafigura in this naphtha trade, after the US physically removed Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro from power and cracked down on sanctioned vessel shipments to and from the country, cutting the primarily Russian flow of the diluent to Venezuela. Since 2023 Venezuela has been the importer for the majority of Caribbean-bound naphtha, and was typically the second-largest buyer of US Gulf coast naphtha, before the US government removed sanctions waivers in May 2025. Buyers in the country primarily import naphtha on long range 1 (LR1) tankers, while the US Gulf coast spot market for refined product shipments is typically dominated by medium range (MR) tankers. Rising Venezuelan demand could spur additional LR1 demand from the US Gulf coast, which primarily trades as a backhaul for more liquid LR1 markets in deeper Pacific basin ports, especially for Mideast Gulf loadings. This could also affect the MR tanker market as other Caribbean naphtha buyers look to stock up ahead of further Venezuelan demand. Chevron sought an MR tanker for a US Gulf coast-Caribbean voyage on 27 January to load naphtha between 30 January and 1 February. A charterer later fixed at least one Caribbean-bound MR tanker at a $900,000 lumpsum on the same day, a 44pc jump in the voyage rate from the $625,000 lumpsum at the end of the trading day on 23 January. It is unclear if the second cargo was naphtha or another refined product. Naphtha spot participants unimpressed A swift rise in N+A naphtha prices on the US Gulf coast opened the arbitrage to the region, following the new supply agreement between the US and Venezuela. Differentials for heavy naphtha, the primary grade use as a Venezuelan diluent, shot up by more than 10¢/USG just before the first US naphtha shipment in early January. By mid-January, N+A naphtha differentials gave up all the gains. Selling interest for US Gulf coast naphtha diminished following the open arbitrage, potentially setting a precedent that sellers wanted to avoid in an already long market. A cargo of naphtha from Huelva, Spain, was booked for the US Gulf coast on 13 January with an estimated arrival of 3 February, shipping reports show. This supported the view that the naphtha arbitrage to the US Gulf coast was open. The Huelva cargo was reportedly suitable for blending to the Venezuelan diluent naphtha specification, but this was not confirmed. The Venezuelan diluent naphtha specification was roughly gauged as 70pc heavy naphtha and about 20-30pc lighter naphtha. Increased Venezuelan production in the longer run is not entirely bullish for US naphtha markets. Before Venezuelan production slowed during the regime of former president Hugo Chavez, Venezuela actively exported light naphtha from Jose and Las Salinas, primarily to the US Atlantic coast. Increased Venezuelan rates would also elevate naphtha production, which could diminish appetite for US naphtha imports and displace US naphtha market share globally. By Ross Griffith and Daphne Tan Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Nigeria Dangote refinery raises gasoline price by 14pc

27/01/26

Nigeria Dangote refinery raises gasoline price by 14pc

London, 27 January (Argus) — Nigeria's privately-owned 650,000 b/d Dangote refinery has raised the price of its gasoline by 14pc, and told local buyers that purchase agreements are no longer valid. Dangote said on Monday the new price is 799 naira/litre (56¢/l). It had cut prices over the Christmas period, the seasonal peak in Nigerian gasoline demand, "to cushion Nigerians at a time of heightened household spending", it said. Local fuel brokers reported gasoline priced around N700/l between 12 December-26 January. Also on Monday Dangote cancelled purchase agreements that were based on its previous pricing levels, market participants said. A trader told Argus a gasoline supply deal it struck with Dangote last week at 699n/l, with truck loadings scheduled for this week, was annulled by Dangote yesterday as it was preparing to send trucks to lift the product from the refinery. Dangote's December price cut broadly eroded gasoline arbitrage economics to Nigeria from Europe. The new higher price would make imports more competitive, according to some market participants, although others said this was contingent on issuance of import permits by Nigeria's downstream regulatory NMDPRA, which is looking unlikely. Argus previously reported the regulator had not issued any gasoline import permits for 2026, as it wants to limit these to covering expected shortfalls in domestic refinery output. Dangote refinery chief executive David Bird said yesterday the site "continues to supply the domestic market with approximately 50mn l (37,750 t/d) of [gasoline] daily". The regulator said Dangote supplied 24,170 t/d in December, noting this was below its planned 37,750 t/d. A Dangote spokesman said the refinery has been offering 37,500 t/d since December, but noted in principle that marketers' offtake is not necessarily the same as volume offered. Bird said gasoline supply could continue during planned maintenance, but did not say if any planned or unplanned works were underway. NMDPRA said on 11 January that the refinery's gasoline-yielding residual fluid catalytic cracker (RFCC) was offline. Four low-sulphur straight run (LSSR) fuel oil cargoes totalling 358,000t loaded from Dangote in 4-20 January, according to Kpler. This is the highest since 534,000t in September 2025, when Dangote's RFCC had works scheduled . A source at the refinery told Argus it plans to shut its crude distillation unit (CDU) for a week , probably this week. The CDU was offline as of Monday, a trader told Argus, but this was unconfirmed. Benchmark non-oxy gasoline barge cracks to Ice Brent were $9.17/bl at the time of writing, down from $9.23/bl at the close of the Monday session. By George Maher-Bonnett and Adebiyi Olusolape Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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