SINGAPORE–China’s refinery throughput for the six months to June marked the first annual decline for the period since at least 2011, data showed on Friday, as strict COVID-19 restrictions and fuel export curbs dampened production.
For June, output was 54.94 million tons, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), bringing January-June processing volumes to 332.22 million tons or 13.4 million barrels per day (bpd), down 6 percent from a year earlier.
The production in June was equivalent to 13.37 million bpd – up 5 percent from 12.7 million bpd in May, but about 10 percent below the all-time high of 14.8 million bpd reached in June 2021.
The month-on-month rebound came as some independent refiners began raising production late in May, after steep cuts between February and April, in response to a moderate pick up in demand as some COVID-19 curbs were eased.
The return of Sinopec Corp’s Yangzi and Hainan refineries from overhauls also contributed to the higher processing, though the state major had to close a 320,000 bpd plant in Shanghai due to a fire on June 18.
China’s demand for refined oil products has been falling since March amid strict curbs to contain the spread of COVID, with gasoline and aviation fuel the worst hit.
But analysts expect throughput to pick up in the third quarter as Beijing tweaks its COVID policy and accelerates infrastructure spending to help revive a flagging economy.
