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ConocoPhillips Announces Price Increase |
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ConocoPhillips advised its marketers today
of a price increase on finished lubricant
taking effect on August 27th. The increase
will bump prices up as much as 16% depending
on the product.
As with most increases, marketers are told
this one is driven by the recent increases
in the cost for base oil, additives, and
packaging.
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Clarification on Castrol's Increase |
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On July 22 JobbersWorld reported that
Castrol announced a revision to the price
increase it previously announced on June
18th that was due to take effect on August 4
and the revision will move Castrol up as
much as 26%.
As a point of clarification, this price
increase does not apply to Castrol
Industrial lubricants. The Last announced
price increase for Castrol Industrial
lubricants was on June 18th. Castrol
Industrial announced at that time there
would be an increase of 5 to 15% effective
July 1, 2008 on its industrial lubricants.
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Ashland Reports Third Quarter Income |
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Ashland Inc. today announced preliminary net
income for the quarter ended June 30, 2008,
the third quarter of its fiscal year, of $72
million, or $1.13 per share. In the
prior-year June quarter, net income was $100
million, or $1.58 per share.
Specific to its Valvoline division,
Ashland's announcement says Valvoline's
third-quarter operating income of $26.1
million compares with $27.9 million in the
year-ago quarter, a 6-percent decline. Sales
and operating revenues of $428 million
increased 5 percent over the June 2007
quarter, largely due to price increases.
Valvoline's total lubricant volume increased
1 percent, primarily from the Do-It-For-Me
installer channel and international sales,
partially offset by reduced volumes in the
Do-It-Yourself channel. Gross profit as a
percent of sales declined 1.2 percentage
points versus the 2007 June quarter,
primarily a result of the lag in timing of
price increases to customers relative to
base oil and additive cost increases
received by Valvoline.
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Valvoline Says SynPower Has 4 Times Better
Wear Protection Than Mobil 1 |
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Valvoline launched a national advertising
campaign this month that takes on competitor
Mobil 1, claiming Valvoline SynPower has
"four times better wear protection than
Mobil 1."
According to Valvoline, the claim is based
on the industry standard Sequence IVA test.
The Sequence IVA is the industry standard
test for determining wear performance of an
engine oil and is required to meet the API
SL and SM requirements. Multiple tests
showed that Valvoline SynPower provided four
times better wear protection than Mobil 1,
as measured in these tests of 5W-30 grades.
"We stand behind the ASTM standard tests
completed recently at our own fully
certified engine testing laboratory and at
an independent laboratory," said Valvoline
Marketing Director John Stotz. "Consumers
tell us it is wear protection that matters
most to them," he said.
Key to Valvoline's anti-wear chemistry is
its zinc/phosphorus additive known as ZDDP.
Increasingly lower levels of phosphorus in
motor oil have been the subject of concern
to automotive enthusiasts. SynPower's low
volatility ZDDP formulation causes the
phosphorus to stay in the oil longer,
according to Valvoline Technical Director
Thom Smith. Phosphorous bonds to metal parts
in the engine to form a 'sacrificial' layer
that helps protect against engine wear,
Smith said.
Valvoline advertising includes print, radio
and on-line banner ads.
JobbersWorld Note: Gearhead forums and
blogs are already buzzing about the
Valvoline Claim. Also, it's interesting to
hear marketers already dropping the "wear
protection" from the claim and simply saying
it's "four times better."
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ExMo Says - Prove It |
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ExxonMobil says it's aware of Valvoline's
advertising claims that Valvoline SynPower
offers four times better wear protection
than Mobil 1.
At the same time, however, its says
ExxonMobil is "not aware of any accurate
technical data to support the claim"
Moreover, they have requested Valvoline to
provide the "substantiating data to support
this claim immediately."
Stay Tuned....This should be interesting.
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