China’s natural gas imports dropped sharply in March amid the tanker traffic paralysis in the Middle East. Oil imports also fell on an annual basis, but were up in February.
Natural gas imports were down by 11% last month, Bloomberg reported, citing official customs data. At 8.183 million tons, the March total brought China’s year-to-date gas imports 4% lower than they were in 2025. Imports of liquefied natural gas, according to preliminary data, may have plummeted by 22% on the year in March to 3.74 million tons.
In crude oil, China imported 2.8% less in March than a year earlier, at a total of 49.98 million tons. Since the start of the year, China’s crude oil imports have been up by a substantial 8.9%, thanks to Beijing’s continued stockpiling drive that began in 2024.
Recent reports indicate China is turning away from Middle Eastern crude and seeking more volumes from Central Asian producers, and more specifically, Kazakhstan. Saudi oil volumes, meanwhile, are set for a sharp decline. May shipments from the kingdom to China could be only half of what the country is set to import this month, unnamed traders told Bloomberg earlier this week. The April total is seen at 40 million barrels.
Apart from purely physical supply constraints, the Saudi crude sales to China will also suffer in May from the hike in prices the Kingdom announced last week.
Saudi Arabia hiked the price of its flagship Arab Light crude loading for Asia in May to a record-high premium over the Middle Eastern benchmarks as the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz upends oil flows and roils markets and prices.
Aramco has raised the price of Arab Light that is going to Asia next month to a premium of $19.50 above the average Oman/Dubai benchmark, off which supply to Asia is typically priced.
By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com
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