Chinese oil refiners, led by heavyweight Sinopec, are set to boost Brazilian crude imports in the third quarter to replace some of the Saudi Arabian supply it cut after the kingdom hiked prices, industry sources said.
China, the world’s top crude importer, has booked nearly 1 million barrels per day of Brazilian crude for August and September delivery, several traders said, of which 20 million barrels were purchased by Unipec, an arm of Sinopec, the top Asian refiner, Reuters reported.
The volumes are significantly higher than the average in the first five months of the year, when China imported 3.02 million tons of Brazilian crude, or 729,125 barrels per day, Chinese customs data showed.
Sinopec did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The increase in Brazilian crude purchases comes as Chinese refiners cut volumes from Saudi Arabia, its second-biggest oil supplier, which has hiked most of its crude prices for July and August after the OPEC kingpin volunteered to cut more output.
Saudi’s move has tightened sour crude supply globally and strengthened the Middle East Dubai benchmark against Brent, the marker for sweet oil produced in the Atlantic Basin.
Read More: Chinese Refiners to Boost Brazil Crude Imports in Third Quarter