• 40 mins NRG Energy to Buy $12 Billion Worth of Assets Amid Power Demand Supercycle
  • 2 hours China Bolsters Export Controls on Critical Minerals
  • 3 hours Egypt to Boost LNG Imports as Soaring Demand Outpaces Local Supply
  • 4 hours Morgan Stanley Predicts Slump in Big Oil Profits
  • 5 hours Cobalt Holdings Announces London Stock Exchange IPO
  • 8 hours Traders Are Rebranding Venezuelan Oil to Bypass Sanctions
  • 9 hours EV Battery Giant Eyes $4 Billion in Hong Kong Share Issue
  • 10 hours Weaker Oil Prices Weigh On Aramco’s Q1 Profit
  • 3 days Shell’s Deepwater Dreams Hit Delay in the Gulf
  • 3 days Wall Street Billionaire Bets on Putin’s Last Gas Pipeline
  • 3 days Nord Stream 2 Enters Debt Restructuring Deal with Creditors
  • 3 days UK More Than Doubles Clean Energy Scheme for Offshore Wind
  • 3 days Enbridge Tops Q1 Profit Estimates on Record Mainline Crude Volumes
  • 3 days Indonesia Looks to Buy More U.S. Fuel to Avoid Steep Tariffs
  • 3 days U.S. Seeks to Downgrade Climate Risk in Global Financial Regulations
  • 3 days Pemex to Reopen Old Oil Wells to Boost Production
  • 3 days UK to Slap Sanctions on 100 Russian-Oil Carrying Tankers
  • 4 days U.S. Nat Gas Liquids Exports Hit Record—Even With China Playing Hardball
  • 4 days Refiners Defy Oil Price Slump With Strong Q1 Profits on Solid Margins
  • 4 days U.S. Sanctions Disrupt Chinese Teapots’ Purchases of Iranian Oil
  • 4 days ConocoPhillips Beats Q1 Profit Estimates as Output Jumps
  • 4 days Russia Claims Active Talks With China on New Gas Pipeline Are Underway
  • 4 days Germany Sees Slump in Wind and Solar Generation
  • 4 days Nigeria Sets Higher Oil Production Target
  • 4 days India Ramps Up U.S. Oil Imports Amid Tariff Discussions
  • 5 days Tesla Sales Plunge In Both China And Europe
  • 5 days Rockefeller Foundation Launches Scheme to Close Coal Plants in Emerging Markets
  • 5 days Energy Transfer Aims for FID on Lake Charles LNG Project by End-2025
  • 5 days U.S. Freeport LNG Export Plant Set to Resume Service After Outage
  • 5 days Exxon to Invest $1.5 Billion in Deepwater Oilfields in Nigeria
  • 5 days India Allows Long-Term Coal Contracts as It Boosts Power Capacity
  • 5 days Norway Eyes Oil and Gas Output Boost With New Licensing Round
  • 5 days Suncor Beats Analyst Forecasts With Q1 Results
  • 5 days India Strikes Pakistan as Conflict Shifts to Strategic Resources
  • 6 days Crude Stockpiles Drop as Oil Prices Rebound
  • 6 days ADNOC Poised to Win EU Approval for $16.6 Billion Covestro Takeover
  • 6 days Marathon Petroleum Sinks to Q1 Loss Amid Low Refining Margins
  • 6 days Oil Prices Surge as Market Shrugs Off OPEC Quota Shock
  • 6 days Higher Demand and Rates Push Duke Energy Q1 Profit Above Estimates
  • 6 days Iraq’s Oil Exports to India Topped $29 Billion in 2024

China’s Imports Of Russian Crude Oil Hit A Record High

China’s crude oil imports from Russia soared to an all-time high of 2.29 million barrels per day (bpd) in May as refiners in the world’s top crude oil importer continue to buy discounted Russian oil.  

China’s imports of Russian crude oil jumped by 15.3% compared to May last year and surged by 32.4% compared to the 1.73 million bpd crude imports from Russia in April, per data from the Chinese General Administration of Customs cited by Reuters.

Saudi Arabia, Russia’s main competitor in the Chinese market and Moscow’s partner in the OPEC+ deal, shipped 1.72 million bpd of its crude to China in May, down by 16% month-on-month.

Russia again overtook Saudi Arabia as the top supplier of crude oil to China in May, after the Kingdom held the top spot briefly in April.

Early this year, Russia was the single largest crude oil supplier to China in January and February, overtaking Saudi Arabia, which was the number-one supplier of oil to China last year.

China and India are the key export outlets for Russian crude and oil products now that Russian exports are embargoed in the EU and under a price cap to countries that adhere to the $60 a barrel price cap for Russian crude oil.

China and India accounted for at least 56% of total Russian exports of crude and products in May, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its monthly report last week.

India’s oil imports from Russia continued to surge as cheaper Russian crude exports find more and more buyers in the world’s third-largest crude oil importer. India’s Russian oil imports in May alone, at 1.96 million bpd, were higher than the 1.74 million bpd in India’s combined imports from the next four largest suppliers - Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the U.S.

Russian oil accounted for a massive 42% of all Indian crude imports, compared to negligible volumes India had imported before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:



Join the discussion | Back to homepage


ADVERTISEMENT


Leave a comment
  • Mamdouh Salameh on June 20 2023 said:
    Between them, China and India are virtually buying more than 4.39 million barrels a day (mbd) of Russian crude. When their purchases of Russian petroleum products are added, the figure rises to 5.04 mbd.

    Russia is headed for another record-breaking exports of 8.4 mbd of crude and petroleum products in June with China and India accounting for 60% of the total.

    Moreover, Russia is selling its oil at far higher prices than the Western price cap and only very few dollars below market prices.

    China’s imports of 2.26 mbd of Russian crude out of a total of just over 13.0 mbd give the lie to Western disinformation trying to shift the blame for the continued weakness in oil prices from US banking system difficulties and fears that they may precipitate a global banking or financial crisis to China.

    Dr Mamdouh G Salameh
    International Oil Economist
    Global Energy Expert

Leave a comment

EXXON Mobil -0.35
Open57.81 Trading Vol.6.96M Previous Vol.241.7B
BUY 57.15
Sell 57.00
Oilprice - The No. 1 Source for Oil & Energy News