Chinese state-owned refiners were awaiting more instructions from Beijing before resuming US crude purchases while commodity trading houses began evaluating their options in the physical market after the trade agreement signed over the weekend. Oil traders were cautious about resuming US crude supply to China due to market uncertainties and concerns over a narrow trading window until March, but market participants were keen to exploit the opportunity, several traders and refinery executives said, requesting anonymity. “Theoretically, imports from the US are unlikely to resume immediately due to the long trading cycle between the two countries, and the three-month window from January 1 is too short,” a Beijing-based crude oil trader said, citing risks of cargoes being stranded on the water. But the Chinese government was likely to nudge state-owned companies to increase US crude imports […]