On Friday, customs data showed that South Korea’s crude imports from the US rose by 32.1% year-on-year in April at 1.92 million tonnes or 468,244 bpd.
The figure was up from 1.68 million tonnes in March.
At the moment, the US is South Korea’s third-largest oil supplier as the sanctions waiver for Iranian oil purchase had ended in May last year. South Korea has not imported Iranian crude since then.
In the first place as a crude supplier is Saudi Arabia, with 3.04 million tonnes or 741,841 bpd shipped last month. The figure showed a 15.4% year-on-year fall.
South Korea imported a total of 11.02 million tonnes or 2.69 million bpd of crude in April, down by 13.6% year-on-year. The country’s refiners have cut refinery run rates due to the crashing fuel demand amidst the coronavirus outbreak in the country.
In the January-April period, South Korea shipped 46.35 million tonnes or 2.81 million bpd of crude oil, down by 7.1% year-on-year.
