As the world continues to attempt to come to grips with the loss of somewhere around 13 million barrels per day in oil, fuel and condensate supplies that normally transit the Strait of Hormuz, there has been an unexpected guardian angel acting in the world’s favour and at its own expense: China.
Instead of attempting to get its hands on every available barrel of oil as it did during a supply crunch in 2021, Beijing has stepped back from the global oil import market and allowed oil flows into the Middle Kingdom to dwindle significantly.
According to figures from the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, over the past 5 years, China imported an average of 11 million barrels per day in April.
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