Russia came in as China’s largest crude oil supplier in December, cementing the top spot for all of 2018 for the third year in a row ahead of rival Saudi Arabia, customs data showed on Friday. Imports from Russia reached 7.04 million tons, or 1.658 million barrels per day, in December, up 40 percent from 5.03 million tons a year earlier, according to the data from the General Administration of Customs. For the full year, Russian imports rose to 71.49 million tons, or 1.43 million bpd, up 19.7 percent from 59.7 million tons in 2017. Demand for Russian crude was supported by a rise in throughput by China’s private refiners, who favor Russian grades such as ESPO, […]