BEIJING: China’s crude oil imports fell 24.3percent year-on-year in July but rose from June’s near-decade low, according to customs data released on Friday, as cheaper barrels bought after the Strait of Hormuz reopened for a brief period in June arrived.
China imported 35.73 million metric tons of crude oil in July, or 8.41 million barrels per day (bpd), up 22percent from June when imports hit the lowest level since October 2016 amid weak domestic demand and export curbs on refined oil products to safeguard energy security due to the Iran war.
The increase reflected barrels bought opportunistically while Brent traded in the USD70s per barrel during a brief partial reopening of the Strait of Hormuz in June, said Ye Lin, vice president at Rystad Energy.
Arrivals from that window are expected to continue through August, supporting an easing of restrictions on refined-product exports and a modest increase in refinery run rates as margins improve, Ye said. Vortexa estimated seaborne imports at 7.1 million bpd in July, with non-Iranian Middle Eastern imports rising by about 1 million bpd from June.
China’s refinery runs also improved from June. Average distillation unit utilisation rose by 0.82 percentage points month-on-month to 58.81percent in July, but remained well below the 72percent level a year earlier, according to Chinese consultancy Oilchem.
Comments