China exported small quantities of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel to Southeast Asia and other regions in April, as fuel exports fell to the lowest in a decade on Beijing’s curbs to safeguard against energy market disruptions caused by the Iran war.
China is Asia’s fourth largest fuel exporter and its restrictions have further tightened supplies as regional refiners have scaled back output because of high prices and the lack of Middle East crude.
Amid requests for fuel from trading partners such as Bangladesh, Reuters reported in late March that Beijing had issued limited waivers for the South Asian nation, along with several others such as Myanmar, Vietnam and Sri Lanka.
Customs data released on Wednesday showed small shipments to several of those countries in April, even as overall refined fuel exports dropped.
The export curbs do not cover Hong Kong and Macau, where levels were steady, or the refuelling of international ships and planes.
China’s gasoline exports dropped to a historical low in April of 23,409 metric tons, and the only recipient outside Hong Kong and Macau was Myanmar, which received just 3,000 metric tons (25,350 barrels), down 65 per cent from March.
Diesel exports fell 69 per cent in April from March to 231,542 tons (1.725 million barrels).
Major recipients of diesel included the Philippines, with 39,468 tons, although the volume fell 82 per cent from March, and Bangladesh at 10,000 tons, down 75 per cent. There were no exports to Singapore.
Myanmar received 5,900 tons in April, a cut of 73 per cent from March, customs data showed.
Biodiesel exports bucked the overall trend, accounting for 34 per cent of China’s diesel exports in April. Exports to the Netherlands and Belgium, the largest importers, stayed steady.
It remains unclear if Beijing’s export restrictions cover biodiesel, mainly made from used cooking oil.
Excluding Hong Kong, jet fuel exports slumped 54 per cent to 489,000 tons. Chinese jet fuel exports include both aircraft refueling and cargo exports.
Vietnam received the largest share, at more than 68,000 tons.
Exports to Australia, China’s biggest jet fuel buyer last year, totaled just 962 tons in April, but it expects more than 100 million liters, or 80,000 tons, of jet fuel to arrive from early June, after lobbying by Canberra.
(1 ton=7.45 barrels for diesel)
(1 ton=8.45 barrels for gasoline)
REUTERS
