China has allowed some independent refiners to reduce processing rates amid mounting losses as Chinese crude and fuel stockpiles remain comfortably high despite the Middle East crisis. In the early weeks of the Iran war and the inability of Middle Eastern exporters to ship crude through the Strait of Hormuz, Chinese authorities directed the private refiners, the so-called teapots, to maintain high levels of gasoline and diesel supply, even at a loss, or risk their crude import quotas slashed if they reduce run rates. Two months after this directive,…
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