Shafaqna English– China’s outbound shipments of refined fuels in July dropped 12.9% from the same period a year earlier, yet they rebounded 6.7% from the previous month, according to customs data published Tuesday(18 Aug 2026). The monthly recovery was attributed to the gradual unwinding of export restrictions, which allowed domestic refiners—many of which had been operating under tight margins—to redirect larger volumes of gasoline and diesel toward overseas buyers.
As a major fuel supplier to Asian markets, China had imposed severe export cutbacks in March as a defensive measure to shield its domestic economy from the oil price volatility triggered by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz amid the Iran war. However, Beijing began reversing these curbs in July, and then further relaxed them in August by authorizing export volumes sufficient to surpass pre-conflict levels.
Source: Reuters