China imported a record 7.357 million metric tonnes (mt) of crude oil from Russia in October, as the threat of US sanctions being imposed on Iranian oil in November approached. The 64% YoY increase was equivalent to nearly 1.73 million bpd, according to government data, and offset the fall of imports from Iran which decreased by 58% YoY and fell for the third consecutive month. The gains were also due to strong demand from independent, or teapot, refiners who were looking to use up import quotas and imported 1.52 million bpd in October, according to industry researcher SCI99.
China imported a record 7.357 million metric tonnes (mt) of crude oil from Russia in October, as the threat of US sanctions being imposed on Iranian oil in November approached. The 58% YoY increase was equivalent to nearly 1.73 million bpd, according to government data, and offset the fall of imports from Iran which decreased by 64% YoY and fell for the third consecutive month. The gains were also due to strong demand from independent, or teapot, refiners who were looking to use up import quotas and imported 1.52 million bpd in October, according to industry researcher SCI99.