China still remains the largest buyer of Russian crude oil which is being sold at a very affordable price in comparison with the international market.
China’s imports of Russian oil totalled 7.29 million tons, up nearly 10 percent from a year ago, according to data from the Chinese General Administration of Customs.
Still, Russian supplies in June, equivalent to about 1.77 million barrels per day (bpd), were below May’s record of close to 2 million bpd.
In the month of June 2022, China imported 5.06 million tons from Saudi Arabia, down from 1.84 million bpd in May and 30 percent below the level in June last year.
Year-to-date imports from Russia totalled 41.3 million tons, up 4 percent on the year but still trailing behind Saudi Arabia, which supplied 43.3 million tons.
The Customs data showed China imported 260,000 tons of Iranian crude oil last month, its fourth shipment of Iran oil since last December.
The Customs data showed China imported 260,000 tons of Iranian crude oil last month, its fourth shipment of Iran oil since last December, confirming an earlier Reuters report.
Despite US sanctions on Iran, China has kept taking Iranian oil, usually passed off as supplies from other countries. These supplies, roughly 7 percent of China’s total crude oil imports, are facing competition from the growing Russian flows.
