China diesel exports surge 11 times in July

(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-08-26 14:36

China exported 425,000 tons of diesel fuel in July, 11.4 times the amount it exported last year in July of 2008, the 21st Century Business Herald reported today, citing statistics from the General Administration of Customs.

Diesel exports in the first seven months of this year reached 2.57 million tons, 9.2 times the amount in the same period last year, and China exported $1.15 billion worth of diesel, 3.8 times that value of what it exported in the same period last year, according to data from the General Administration of Customs.

The increase in imports was driven by stockpile pressure, though, and not profitability, said Liao Kaishun, analyst with C1 Energy, an independent industry intelligence provider.

China's diesel production in July grew to 12.85 million tons, up 9.01 percent year-on-year, and 7.74 percent month-on-month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. But domestic diesel consumption is expected to drop 3 percent year-on-year for 2009, Liao said.

Diesel sales at Sinopec and PetroChina, two of China's enormous state-owned oil companies, dropped 12 percent month-on-month in July, according to a previous report, and the two companies’ diesel stockpiles totaled 1.3 million tons at end of July, the 21st Century Business Herald said.