China’s oil consumption edges up

Beijing: China’s apparent oil consumption crept up just one per cent in November from a year earlier, hit by fuel shortages that persisted through the month in spite of a string of government moves to smooth supplies.

China’s refiners retreated from the market in the autumn because low state-set prices, combined with global crude markets climbing toward $100 per barrel, were causing massive losses.


Faced with the worst fuel crisis in four years, Beijing raised prices at the start of November to tempt its plants to increase runs and issued a set of directives to remind oil majors of their “social duty”.

The shortages eased, but only slightly, nudging apparent consumption up about 2 per cent from October levels to 6.96 million barrels per day (bpd), but leaving it just 1 per cent above a year ago, Reuters calculations from official data showed.

Reuters