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China concerns more oil products export quota in second batch for 2024

China has actually released its 2nd batch of improved fuel export quotas for 2024, totalling 18 million metric loads, Chinese consultancies and trade sources said on Tuesday.

The volume is 2 million lots more than the 2nd batch issued in 2015 and might increase fuel products and even more depress refining margins in Asia.

The export volumes, comprising 14 million lots of refined items and 4 million tons of marine fuel, were allotted mostly to state-owned refiners, according to consultancies Longzhong and JLC and the trade sources.

The brand-new quota brings this year's overall for exports of fine-tuned and marine fuels to 45 million lots, following the very first 27-million-ton batch provided at the start of January.

The increased volume year on year is most likely due to greater need for jet fuel from the air travel bunkering sector, which is also counted as exports, Emma Li, an expert at shiptracking company Vortexa said.

China might also issue smaller batches for the rest of the year to prevent a large year-on-year increase, she added.

March exports for the aviation fuel were near a four-year high, customs information revealed, while traders anticipate May deliveries to breach the 2 million heap level again.

Beijing handles its refined oil exports by means of a stringent quota system, utilizing exports as a tool to balance and make sure the domestic market is sufficiently supplied.

State oil companies Sinopec and PetroChina , the leading receivers of the quotas that cover diesel, gas and aviation fuel, together were granted 9.98 million loads or more than 70% of the overall, according to the two consultancies.

Private refiner Zhejiang Petrochemical Corp was allotted 1.22 million tons, while a refinery subsidiary of state defence corporation Norinco and China National Air Travel Fuel Business were appointed 230,000 heaps in total.

China's Ministry of Commerce did not immediately react to a faxed ask for comment.

(source: Reuters)