China’s August oil imports rise for second month amid eased fuel export control

Customs figures released by China on Tuesday show crude oil imports rose in August from the previous month, though they stood 23.4% below the level of a year earlier. The world's largest crude buyer brought in 37.93 million metric tons, equal to 8.93 million barrels per day, a 6.2% increase on July. This marked the second straight monthly gain, as curbs on refined fuel products were eased from July.

Overall intake for the first eight months fell 14.6% from a year earlier, after exports of refined products were restricted from March to protect home supplies, while local demand weakened on higher prices. Refined product exports climbed to 6.01 million tons in August, a 29% monthly rise that also topped the 5.33 million tons sent abroad in August last year. Kpler's ship-tracking data showed onshore stocks shrank by 550,000 barrels per day in August, a slower decline than July's 800,000.

Kpler analyst Muyu Xu expects imports to recover gradually after September, though seaborne arrivals will stay below 8.5 million to 9 million bpd. Vortexa's Emma Li linked the rise in crude intake to strong fuel shipments, and the firm expects a minimum of 3 million tons of transport fuel to reach places beyond Hong Kong in September. Gasoline and diesel demand also improved from July but stayed 8% and 9% lower than a year earlier, according to Oilchem.