BEIJING: China's diesel exports in November plunged 69% from a year ago as refineries prioritised domestic supply to ease a fuel crunch, while gasoline exports also dropped.
Diesel shipments were 600,000 tonnes last month, though that was up from 560,000 tonnes in October, data from General Administration of Customs showed on Saturday.
Gasoline sales were 810,000 tonnes, a 19.8% slide from October and down 35.8% from the same period last year. November jet fuel exports doubled to 940,000 tonnes from the same period a year earlier.
State-backed oil refineries have raised oil processing rates and increased output of diesel amid a supply crunch of the fuel in recent months. That followed a cut to crude oil import quotas at independent refiners and the imposition of a hefty import tax on a diesel blending component.
Saudi Arabia's October crude oil exports hit 18-month high
November diesel output hit a record high.
State television reported this month that Sinopec's 360,000 million barrels-per-day Jinling refinery cancelled all its diesel export plans in the fourth quarter to ensure supply to the domestic market.
Last month, Beijing issued new export quotas for low-sulphur fuel oil and for other refined fuels such as gasoline and diesel for the rest of 2021.
Saturday's data showed imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) increased 5.5% on year to 6.9 million tonnes in November, buoyed by increasing demand for winter heating as China continues to promote switching from coal heating to gas.
Comments
Comments are closed.