China March crude oil imports climb to the second highest on record - Reuters

According to the latest trade data published by China Customs on Friday, China’s crude oil imports jumped in the month of March to reach the second highest on record.

Stronger demand from the refineries was cited as the main reason for the surge, as the refiners replenished stocks on generous government quotas and ahead of peak maintenance season.

Key Details:

“March shipments came in at 39.17 million tonnes, or 9.22 million barrels per day (bpd). That compared with 8.41 million bpd in February, and January’s record 9.57 million bpd.

Imports for the first quarter grew 7 percent from a year ago to 112.07 million tonnes, or about 9.09 million bpd. That marked an increase of nearly 595,000 bpd on average compared with the same period in 2017.

The first-quarter growth was fueled by higher government quotas for independent plants. But a new tax regulation targeted at small refiners and blenders, as well as planned plant overhauls, is seen capping buying for April and May.

Friday’s customs data also showed China’s March refined fuel exports shot to a new high at 6.69 million tonnes, 43 percent higher than the same month a year earlier. Imports only inched up 2 percent at 2.76 million tonnes.”