It was a question that just as recently as last week was still undecided. Would Beijing kowtow to Washington’s demand that it stop importing Iranian oil at the start of May after the 180-day import waiver period ended? The answer, at least for now, is that Beijing will comply. Oil majors Sinopec Group and CNPC, China’s two top oil refiners, are reportedly skipping purchases of Iranian oil for loading in May, Reuters reported on Friday , citing people familiar with the deal. On April 22, President Trump surprised oil markets when said he would end 180-day Iranian oil import waivers put in place in November for eight of the Islamic Republic’s largest oil importers, including import heavyweights China, Japan, and India. Prices the same day for both global oil benchmark Brent crude futures and U.S. oil benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures spiked 3 percent on the news. Prices […]