BEIJING: China’s June crude imports slumped 41.3percent to their lowest in almost a decade as refinery run rates hit a ten-year low due to weak domestic demand and export curbs on refined oil products to safeguard energy security amid the Iran war.
China imported 29.27 million tons of crude oil in June, or 7.12 million barrels per day, the lowest since October 2016, customs data showed on Tuesday. The slump extended into June from May, with imports falling by another 12percent, after oil imports hit an eight-year low in May. China’s seaborne crude imports stood at around 6 million bpd in June, with imports from the Middle East hitting their lowest level in ten years and Iranian oil imports also dropping 40percent month on month to below 800 thousand barrels per day, according to ship-tracking company Vortexa.
In June, the utilisation rate of China’s crude distillation units stood at 57.72percent, down 3.28 percentage points month on month and down 13.09 percentage points year on year, according to Chinese consultancy Oilchem.
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