LONDON (Dispatches) - China’s Iranian oil imports reached nearly 650,000 barrels per day in April.
Initial assessments by Vortexa Analytics showed China imported nearly 650,000 barrels per day of Iranian crude in April, slightly less than the nearly 700,000 bpd discharged in March.
The imports came off peak volumes seen in late 2021 and early 2022 as demand from independent refiners weakened after COVID-19 lockdowns pummelled fuel margins and on growing imports of lower-priced Russian oil.
The easing of Iranian oil purchases still make up some 7% of imports by the world’s largest crude importer.
Iran palns to boost its oil sales beyond China despite sanctions - Iran’s number one customer for the past two years - to previous clients in South Korea and Europe.
Meanwhile, Russian crude, displaced by falling demand in Europe, is heading to China.
China’s independent refiners, also known as teapots and situated mostly in the eastern province of Shandong, are key Iranian oil buyers. The refiners have since February reduced crude imports, operating under half their capacity in April as soaring prices, tighter import quotas and COVID lockdowns squashed margins, traders said.
Chinese customs data last reported imports of 260,000 tonnes (1.9 million barrels) of Iranian oil each in December and January, in its first official record in a year.