China’s US appetite has been declining in recent years thanks to discounts in Russian and Iranian oil, but exports in 2024 were 166,000 barrels per day, according to shipment data from KPLER.
According to Kpler, growth in US crude oil exports stagnated in 2024, with just 0.6% or 24,000 bpd increasing to an average of 3.8 million bpd in 2024.
Calling China’s share of US exports “not a trivial amount,” Kpler analyst Matt Smith said international demand for US crude oil exports could be at a peak I did it.
Approximately 48% of US coarse crude materials imported by China were medium density types with higher sulfur content, such as Mars and Southern Green Canyon, which are considered moderately successful. This type of crude oil is ideal for US refineries to handle, and buyers can easily be found domestically, especially if the US imposes tariffs on Canada and Mexico, analysts said. “Medium sours are welcome within the US Gulf Coast. Refiners need it,” he said, adding that US exports will drop to 3.6 million bpd this year, especially if Canada and Mexico tariffs are in place. said Rohit Lathod, a market analyst at energy researcher Voltexa, who sees it as a possibility. Medium sole crude oil is retained. Approximately 44% of China’s rough imports from the US were lighter density and lower sulfur types, known as lighter and sweeter grades, like the West Texas intermediate produced in light Texas. That type of oil could find demand at competitive prices from refiners in Europe and India and could continue to be exported, analysts said.
According to Kpler, Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (Loop) processed almost half of all exports last year into nearly half of their exports to China. The company was not immediately available to comment.
An additional 25% to the US, an additional 25% of exports to China came from a facility near Corpus Christi, Enbridge, Texas, Ingressside, Texas, Kpler data shows.
“The light sweet market is very broad and liquid. It will not affect exports,” said a source familiar with Enbridge’s Operation Ingelside. China accounted for less than 15% of the site’s exports last year.
Enbridge did not immediately respond to requests for comments submitted outside of business hours.
According to Kpler, some of the top US crude sellers to China had at least 13 cargoes sold there in 2024. Occidental did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
In China, the impact may be reduced as US imports accounted for around $6 billion in 2024, and 1.7% of the country’s total gross imports, starting from 2.5% in 2023, according to Chinese customs data. It has sex.
China increased imports from Canada by about 30% last year to 500,000 BPD thanks to the expansion of the Trans Mountain Pipeline.
