Iraq ranks third in China's crude oil imports

Shafaq News/ Iraq emerged as the third-largest crude oil supplier to Chinese state-owned refineries during the first two months of 2023, recently released data by China's General Administration of Customs demonstrated.

According to the records, Iraq shipped a total of 9.623 million metric tons of crude oil, or 70.247 million barrels, during this period. This equates to a daily average of 1.190 million barrels per day, which is a 4% decrease compared to the same period in 2022.

In a shift of market dynamics, Russia overtook Saudi Arabia to become the largest crude oil supplier to China, with China's total crude oil imports from Russia amounting to 15.68 million metric tons, or 1.94 million barrels per day, during the January to February period of 2023. This reflects a 23.8% increase compared to the same period in 2022, when China imported 1.57 million barrels per day from Russia.

Despite the change in rankings, Middle Eastern oil producers remain important to China's energy security. Saudi Arabia ranked second with 13.92 million metric tons of crude oil imported during the first two months of 2023, equivalent to 1.72 million barrels per day, a decline of 4.7% from the same period in 2022. Meanwhile, the UAE ranked fourth with China importing 6.583 million metric tons, or 814,000 barrels per day.

Brazil came in fifth with 6.271 million metric tons, or 775,000 barrels per day.