Beijing, August 20: China’s crude oil imports rose 11.5% in July from a year earlier, buoyed by strong refinery runs at state-owned plants, customs data showed on Wednesday, with Russia remaining the top supplier while shipments from the United States stayed absent for a second month.
Imports from Russia climbed 16.8% year-on-year to 8.71 million metric tons, equivalent to 2.05 million barrels per day (bpd). Saudi Arabia, the second-largest supplier, shipped 7.47 million tons, or 1.76 million bpd, up 16.6% from a year earlier.
Purchases from Malaysia, a key transhipment hub for sanctioned Iranian oil, slumped 31.9% to 4.22 million tons, or 990,000 bpd, compared with a surge in June when arrivals had hit 7.09 million tons. No crude was recorded from Iran or Venezuela.
Other major suppliers included Iraq at 4.89 million tons (up 5.5%), Brazil at 3.78 million tons (up 22.1%), the United Arab Emirates at 2.84 million tons (up 26.2%), Oman at 2.50 million tons (down 25.2%), Indonesia at 2.08 million tons (up 3,542%), Kuwait at 1.61 million tons (up 16.9%), and Angola at 1.42 million tons (down 32.9%).
While imports eased from June’s near two-year high, they remained robust as refineries kept operating at high capacity.
The absence of U.S. crude shipments extended into July, following a halt in June. Washington has tightened trade measures against Moscow, including imposing 50% tariffs on India, with a 25% duty on its commerce with Russia.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said China, Russia’s largest oil buyer, had so far avoided secondary sanctions. He noted that much of the Russian crude purchased by Beijing is refined and re-exported, including to Europe, and warned that additional sanctions on China could risk driving up global energy prices.
“Well, if you look at the oil that’s going to China and being refined, a lot of that is then being sold back into Europe,” Rubio said in an interview with Fox Business. “There’s more Europe can do with regard to their own sanctions.”
