Official customs data showed Chinese crude oil buyers relied more on regular suppliers in October as they cut purchases amid limited import quotas and inventory tapping. These importers sourced their crude from more than 30 suppliers in most of this year. However, the number of suppliers dropped to 28 last month, when both private and state refiners slowed down buying, pushing down imports to a 39-month low of 8.94 million bpd.
The top ten suppliers of crude to China accounted for 88.5% of the country’s overall imports in October. That compares to 78.7% a year earlier and 86.2% in September, the customs data showed. Middle Eastern suppliers controlled 53% of China’s oil imports last month, rising from 48% a year ago but falling from 55% in September. Saudi Arabia was China’s largest crude supplier last month, with 7.09 million tons, increasing nearly 20% year-on-year but decreasing 11% month-on-month.
China’s crude oil imports from the Middle East totalled 213.3 million tons in the first ten months of the year. That represents a rise of 0.2% from the same period in 2020. For comparison, China’s overall oil imports fell 7.2% over the same period. Middle Eastern suppliers have a market share of 50.2% in the January-October period, compared to 46.5% a year earlier.
European suppliers had a market share of 21% in October. That represents an increase from 19% from the previous month and October 2020, thanks to robust arrivals from Russia. Russia delivered 6.64 million tons of crude oil to China last month, rising 1.3% from a year earlier and 8.2% from September.
