China’s crude oil imports from Iran rebounded in April from March following a sharp plunge in shipments earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal reported. Iranian crude oil imports fell 23.7% in April from a year earlier to 388,034 barrels per day, but were still up 53.2% from March. The surge came after state-owned China International United Petroleum & Chemical Co., known as Unipec, resolved a contract dispute with National Iranian Oil Co (NIOC) in mid-February. Unipec skipped oil purchases from NIOC in March but possibly began accepting additional barrels in April. Imports from Iran could resume in coming months, as Beijing has said that Western sanctions on Iran will not affect its oil purchases. China halted imports from Sudan in April after South Sudan stopped oil production in January due to a dispute with Sudan. To fill the gap, China’s crude imports from Saudi Arabia increased 14% in April from a year earlier.
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