THE OVERALL PICTURE FOR ASIA’S REFINERS IS THAT PROFIT MARGINS APPEAR TO HAVE SHIFTED STRUCTURALLY LOWER AS A RESULT OF CHINA’S MASSIVE EXPORTS OF DIESEL AND GASOLINE.

appear to have shifted structurally lower as a result of China’s massive exports of diesel and gasoline.

China’s exports of 370,000 barrels per day (bpd) of diesel in July were 181.8 percent higher than the same month last year, and year-todate exports are up a staggering 223 percent.

Its gasoline exports are also up sharply, rising 84.3 percent in the first seven months from a year ago.

The Chinese customs data does give clues as to where the additional fuel exports are heading, with gasoline shipments to Malaysia rising 490 percent in the first seven months of the year for example.

For diesel, Chinese exports to the Philippines are up an astounding 2,084 percent to the equivalent of about 45,000 bpd, and those to Australia have jumped 1,049 percent.

But these figures must be treated with some caution as they reflect only direct exports to those countries, and not cargoes shipped through another country.

Chinese customs figures show a 134.7 percent rise on diesel exports to Singapore in the first seven months of the year and an 119 percent increase in ship-

For this reason, looking at the Australian statistics is useful, as it breaks down fuel imports by country of origin.

Australia reports data in megaliters and converting this to barrels per day using the BP conversion factors shows that China exported about 54,000 bpd of refined products in June, the latest month for which statistics are available.

This was almost 50 percent higher than the average 37,800 bpd Australia imported from China in the year ended June 30.

As China’s exports to Australia have risen, other countries have seen theirs decline.

South Korea’s total product exports to Australia were about 135,800 bpd in June, down from