China's apparent oil consumption down in 1st 7 months, but at slower pace

China's apparent oil consumption in the first seven months this year was down by 0.6 percent year on year, but at slower pace, according to the China Petroleum and Chemical Industry Association (CPCIA).

The apparent oil consumption represents net imports and output, and could be taken as an index for the real oil consumption excluding inventory.

The decline was 2.6 percentage points lower than that of the first six months, CPCIA said in its latest reports.

The reports showed that the apparent oil consumption for the first seven months was up 1.8 percent year on year. This was the first time the index had seen a rise this year.

The apparent consumption of refined oil products fell by 1.6 percent from a year earlier, but was up 1 percent from the first half of this year.

The sales of refined oil in China's domestic market reached 18.78 million tonnes, a record for this year. It was up 3.2 percent from a year earlier and 8.1 percent from last month, according to the CPCIA.

The CPCIA attributed the rebound of oil consumption, especially diesel demand, to the recovery of national economy.

Source: Xinhua