China oil imports surge past US to record as output stagnates -BBG

Bloomberg is out with an article on the Chinese oil demand, noting that China’s crude imports in March surged to a record, and surpassed the US as the world’s biggest importer during the first quarter, as domestic output declines.

China customs figures showed China’s inbound shipments during the first quarter rose 15% to almost 105 million tons, which averages about 8.5 million barrels a day. 

The US imported almost 8 million barrels a day in March and about 8.15 million during the first three months, Bloomberg calculations using weekly data show.

On a monthly basis, China imported a 38.95 million metric tons of crude, the data showed. Net product exports rose 5.4% from February to 1.97 million tons.