China's Apparent Oil Demand Dips in April for First Yearly Decline Since 2022

Chinese refiners processed lower crude volumes in April due to maintenance, while apparent oil demand in the world's top importer of the commodity fell for the first time on an annual basis since the end of 2022.

Chinese refiners processed lower crude volumes in April due to maintenance, while apparent oil demand in the world's top importer of the commodity fell for the first time on an annual basis since the end of 2022.

Chinese government data showed on Friday that crude processing rates fell by nearly 4% year-over-year to 14.36 million barrels per day (bpd) in April, due to the start of maintenance season at refineries.

At the same time, Chinese imports of crude oil rose by 5.45% year-on-year in April as refiners stocked up on crude to prepare for the five-day local Labor Day weekend that began on May 1, government data showed earlier this month.

Last month, Chinese refiners imported 10.88 million bpd of crude oil, up compared to 10.4 million bpd imported for the same month of 2023, per data from the General Administration of Customs.

However, Chinese crude imports in April this year slumped from the levels from the previous month.

Much of the increase in Chinese crude oil imports in the first quarter of 2024 was due to cheap abundant flows of Russian crude, which – hampered en route to India by the U.S. sanctions – has found a home in the world's top oil importer, analysts say.

But in April, imports fell compared to March amid rising oil prices at the time cargoes were contracted.

Manufacturing recovery in China was again muted in April, while the property crisis continues to weigh on construction-intensive fuels such as diesel.