Iran oil exports to China fall sharply amid US sanctions, weakened demand
China is by far Iran’s largest customer for oil, snapping up around 90% of the Islamic Republic’s shipments.
Iran’s crude oil exports to China fell sharply in May amid tighter US sanctions imposed under President Donald Trump’s so-called “maximum pressure campaign” aimed at curbing Tehran’s oil shipments.
Citing ship-tracking data from Vortexa, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that Iran exported just over 1.1 million barrels per day of crude and condensate to China in May, a 20% year-on-year fall.
Small private Chinese oil refiners, known as “teapots,” have been the main buyers of discounted Iranian crude, taking advantage of sanctions-driven price cuts. However, they are now finding it increasingly difficult to evade US sanctions amid sluggish oil demand from Beijing.
“The tightening of US sanctions [is] straining the supply chain and raising concerns about the reliability of shipments,” Emma Li, senior market analyst at Vortexa, told Bloomberg. “At the same time, refinery demand in China has weakened largely due to delayed seasonal maintenance, which now appears likely to extend through July.”
