According to a survey by three data companies, China imported Iranian crude oil for the second consecutive month in July since the end of the U.S. sanctions exemption policy against Iran. One company estimated that part of the oil entered China's strategic reserve tank.
According to the companies tracking the movements of oil tanks, 4.4 million to 11 million barrels of Iranian crude oil entered China last month, equivalent to 142-36 million barrels a day. The high end of the region will mean that, despite sanctions, the total import volume in July will be close to half that of the same period last year.
At a time when Sino-US relations are shaky, imports are continuing: this will hinder US President Trump's efforts to cut off crude oil exports, which are crucial to Iran, through sanctions. At the same time, trade tensions between China and the United States have intensified, which has clouded the global economy.
Senior Trump officials estimate that 50-70% of Iranian crude oil exports go to China and about 30% to Syria.
China is usually Iran's biggest oil buyer and has questioned U.S. sanctions. But according to customs data, China's imports from Iran in June were about 210,000 barrels a day, the lowest in nearly 10 years, down 60% from the same period last year, as some Chinese refineries avoided buying Iranian oil out of fear of sanctions.
In the last week of August, the General Administration of Customs of China will publish import data in July broken down by source.
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