China substitutes US oil with Canadian
(MENAFN)
China has significantly increased its crude oil imports from Canada while drastically cutting back on purchases from the United States due to ongoing trade tensions, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.
China has significantly increased its crude oil imports from Canada while drastically cutting back on purchases from the United States due to ongoing trade tensions, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.
Over the past two months, Washington and Beijing have exchanged a series of tariff hikes. In response, China has reduced its U.S. oil imports by nearly 90%, opting for alternative trade measures instead of further tariffs on American goods.
According to Bloomberg, citing data from the oil and gas analytics firm Vortexa Ltd., Chinese crude imports from a Canadian port near Vancouver hit a record 7.3 million barrels in March and may rise even further in April. In contrast, China’s imports of U.S. oil have plummeted to just 3 million barrels per month, a sharp decline from a peak of 29 million barrels in June last year.
Historically, China’s direct imports of Canadian crude were limited due to logistical challenges, with Chinese refineries relying mainly on oil from the Middle East and Russia. U.S. crude accounted for only 1.7% of China’s total oil imports in 2024, down from 2.5% in 2023, based on Chinese customs data.
Canada’s ability to export oil directly to Asia improved after the May 2024 completion of the Trans Mountain Expansion pipeline, which connects Alberta’s oil fields to Canada’s Pacific coast. Previously, most of Canada’s oil exports were sent to the U.S. for refining or re-export.
Wenran Jiang, president of the Canada-China Energy & Environment Forum, told Bloomberg that China’s shift away from U.S. oil is likely to persist due to the trade dispute, adding that Canada is a welcome alternative as China seeks to diversify beyond Russian and Middle Eastern sources.
Despite the decline in Chinese imports, the U.S. still shipped around 5% of its total crude exports to China last year, according to shipping data from Kpler. Meanwhile, Russia remains China’s top oil supplier, with exports to China reaching record highs in 2024, partly due to discounted prices. Saudi Arabia, China's second-largest supplier, saw a 9% drop in oil exports to the country compared to the previous year.
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