FALCON POWERS – Data from China’s General Administration of Customs showed on Monday that China’s fuel oil imports rose 10% in April compared to a year earlier to 2.93 million metric tons, the highest level since at least 2020 according to Reuters records.
According to trade sources familiar with the transactions, April imports, which equate to 620,180 barrels per day, were 48% higher than in March as traders brought in more cargoes from Venezuela and Iran. Imports have been trending higher as some refiners boosted purchases before prices rise further amid a global upswing in the high-sulfur fuel oil market in the second quarter of this year.
At the same time, fuel oil export volumes, mostly low-sulfur fuel oil, in April reached 1.64 million tons or around 347,130 barrels per day, up 10% from the same month a year earlier.
Exports increased compared to the same month last year as global fuel demand rose amid shipping disruptions for geopolitical reasons this year.
