China's crude oil imports rose 14.5 percent year-on-year to
145.18 million tons in 2006, or equivalent 2.9 million barrels per
day, due to a rise in domestic demand, customs figures showed
yesterday.
In December, the country imported 11.56 million tons of crude
oil, up 2.6 percent from 2005 according to the website of the
General Administration of Customs.
Crude oil exports remained negligible in 2006 at 6.34 million
tons, 21.4 percent less than a year earlier.
A Shanghai-based analyst spoke of the government's choice to
increase more in the second half due to falling global prices from
July onward.
"For 2007 and years to come, I think the imports (for crude oil)
will remain big. A sizable domestic demand has to be met by imports
for a long run," said the analyst, who asked not to be named. "The
government will also import (crude oil) to fill its reserve tanks
when prices are low."
In November, China's monthly crude oil?imports surged to a
record-high of 13.5 million tons, up nearly a third in annualized
terms and edging out September's 13.46 million tons.
Among the crude oil?imports, 1.74 million tons came via
China's only cross border crude pipeline, which in July started
piping oil to Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from
Kazakhstan, according to Xinjiang authorities.
China's imports for oil products, such as diesel and gasoline,
rose 15.7 percent to 36.38 million tons in 2006 while oil product
exports plummeted 11.9 percent to 12.35 million tons.
Among 2006 trade figures for other key commodities announced
yesterday, steel product exports surged 109.6 percent to 43 million
tons while coal exports dropped 11.7 percent to 63.3 million
tons.
(Shanghai Daily January 12, 2007)