China Processed More Crude Oil Than US for Most of 2020 - Energy Dept.

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th March, 2021) China's monthly oil refinery output topped the US for the first time ever in April 2020, starting a trend that held for the rest of the year with the exception of two months, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a report on Thursday.

"For most of 2020, China's refineries processed more crude oil than US refineries," the release said. "China processed more crude oil than the United States not only because of the unique effects of COVID-19 pandemic-related restrictions in 2020, but also because of differences in the longer-term structural refining trends between the two countries.

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The report attributed much of the shift to reduced demand for gasoline, jet fuel and other petroleum products due to COVID-19, which hit the US in April and continued for the remainder of 2020.

Chinese refinery runs continue to grow, in part because government set prices for refined petroleum products above the cost of crude oil, giving refineries an incentive to boost production, the report said.

Meanwhile, US refinery runs have yet to return to March 2020 levels, with the COVID-19 slowdown exacerbated by four hurricanes from August to October 2021 that shut down refineries on the Gulf of Mexico coast, according to the report.