Crude oil import by China is slowly increasing with a 3.1% rise recorded in September from August figures. China imported an average of 11.52 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, according to a report by Oil Price.Com
Year on Year Chinese crude oil imports jumped by 24.4 percent, or by 2.26 million bpd.
China’s floating storage fell for the first time in five months and is expected to continue to decline as backlogs at the ports are processed.
On Monday oil prices rose by as much as 6 percent, with several factors contributing to its rise.
According to the data released, the refineries utilization rate is stable at some 70 percent, but independent refiners could lower crude processing throughput in the medium term due to lower refining margins and stricter mechanisms for tax collection, the report said.
“After growing for five consecutive months, floating storage in China fell from for the first time, indicating that port congestion has started to ease,” oil analysts Juan Carlos Rodriguez and Valantis Markogiannakis wrote in a report on Monday.
China’s oil imports continue to grow compared with previous years, but they are easing off the record-highs seen earlier this summer when Chinese refiners imported cheap barrels they had snapped up in April at the lowest prices in decades.
China’s manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) increased in September, with the indicators for export and imports showing expansion for the first time this year.
By; Ifunanya Ikueze
