Customs data released Wednesday showed that South Korea imported 17% more oil from Iran in April than a year ago, but will stop importing oil from Iran starting in May, as the U.S. exemption from sanctions against Iran ends in early May.
Customs data show that South Korea imported 1.45 million tons of crude oil from Iran in April, or 353,223 barrels per day, compared with 1.24 million tons in the same period last year.
Data show that South Korea's crude oil imports from Iran decreased by 17.4% to 387 million tons, or 235,533 barrels per day, from nearly 4.7 million tons in the same period last year.
Following the U.S. initiative, Korean petrochemical producers are expected to look around the world for suppliers to replace Iranian condensate.
South Korea imported 12.76 million tons of crude oil in April, or 3.1 million barrels per day, up 10.2% from 11.58 million tons in the same period last year.
Data show that South Korea's oil purchases from Saudi Arabia increased by 8.5% to 359,900 tons, or 874,400 barrels a day, compared with the same period last year. Saudi Arabia is South Korea's largest supplier of crude oil.
South Korea's imports of oil from the United States quadrupled in April to 1.45 million tons, or 353,000 barrels a day, compared with 268,500 tons a year earlier. This shows that Korea is seeking to diversify its import sources.
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