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China’s purchases of Russian oil fell 14 in June since May, according to new data.
China imported 7. 28 million Russian crude in June, up from 8. 42 million in May.
The drop raises questions about Russia’s turn to Asia, as European countries buy back.
China cut its purchases of Russian oil by 14% in June with May, as zero-COVID lockdowns hit the economy, according to new data.
General Administration of Customs data released wednesday showed China imported 7. 28 million crude oil from Russia last month, well below May’s 8. 42 million.
In dollar terms, China bought $5. 05 billion of crude oil from Russia in June, up from $5. 85 billion the previous month.
However, China’s imports remained higher than the previous year. The country bought 6. 65 million tons of Russian oil in June 2021, with lower prices, imports charging $3. 33 billion.
The country’s economy has slowed this year as part of President Xi Jinping’s COVID 0 policy, which aims to restrict the spread of the coronavirus by implementing strict local lockdowns.
Beijing has set itself an annual economic expansion target of 5. 5% this year. However, analysts expect an expansion up to 4%.
COVID lockdowns in major cities like Shanghai in recent months have reduced energy demand.
The slowdown in China’s oil purchases raises questions about the Russian economy’s ability to effectively pivot to Asia.
The European Union is phasing out imports of Russian crude, but China and India have greatly increased their purchases, allowing Moscow to continue pumping cash into Moscow’s coffers as it wages war against Ukraine.
However, Bloomberg reported on Monday that crude shipments from Russia to China and India fell 30% from their recent peak.
Overall, China’s import volumes fell in June. Crude oil imports totaled 35. 23 million tonnes, down 30% from 45. 82 million tonnes in May.
“Import volumes may be mild in the long run as the domestic economy recovers from the recent wave of the virus,” Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior China economist at consultancy Capital Economics, said in a note to clients.
Still, Evans-Pritchard said problems with China’s bloated real estate sector may also hurt the economy.
“Inbound shipments are likely to remain low given the relatively modest and ongoing political deleveraging of real estate developers,” he said.
Read the article on Business Insider