The throughput of Chinese refineries last month averaged 14.08 million bpd last month, up by 19.7 percent on the year thanks to the recovery in demand for fuels and China’s stocking up on finished products before maintenance season begins. Reuters reports the total amount of crude that passed through Chinese refineries during March was 59.79 million tons, and while a substantial increase on the year, it was lower than the throughput of Chinese refiners during the first two months of the year. The total refinery throughput for the first quarter stood at 174.04 million tons, which was 16.5 percent higher than the total for the first quarter of 2020 when China was in the grips of the pandemic. The increased refinery throughput was made possible by a strong rise in crude oil imports last month. At 21 percent, the annual increase in imports lent some support to hesitant oil […]