Chinese crude oil imports in June saw a significant decrease, marking the weakest performance for that month in ten years. The volume of imports fell by 41.3% compared to the previous year, according to the source publication.
Despite the substantial drop in crude imports, refinery throughput in China remained strong. Refineries maintained operations above 12.4 million barrels per day, indicating a consistent level of processing activity.
The discrepancy between reduced imports and sustained refinery runs was addressed by utilizing existing crude oil reserves. The difference in supply was covered by drawing from the country's storage tanks.
This strategy also coincided with an increase in product exports from China. The higher export volumes suggest that refineries continued to produce refined products, even with lower incoming crude shipments.
The source material indicates a notable draw rate from storage over the past four months. This sustained reduction in inventory levels has implications for the remaining crude oil in storage.
