貿易戰加劇，中國石油需求從美國轉向加拿大

 Recently Yahoo News on-line picked up the following:

China Pivots From US to Canada for More Oil as Trade War Worsens

Robert Tuttle and Yongchang Chin

Wed, April 16, 2025 at 10:46 a.m. PDT·2 min read

(Bloomberg) -- Chinese refiners are importing record amounts of Canadian crude after slashing purchases of US oil by roughly 90% amid escalating trade tensions.

A pipeline expansion in Western Canada that opened less than a year ago has presented China and other East Asian oil importers with expanded access to the vast crude reserves in Alberta’s oilsands region.

Chinese crude imports from the port at the pipeline terminus near Vancouver soared to an unprecedented 7.3 million barrels in March and are on pace to exceed that figure this month, according to data from Vortexa Ltd., which tracks waterborne oil and natural-gas shipments. Meanwhile, Chinese imports of US oil have collapsed to 3 million barrels a month from a peak of 29 million in June.

The shift in North American crude flows to China — the world’s biggest crude importer — is yet another example of the economic and strategic disruptions engendered by US President Donald Trump’s moves to reshape global trade relations.

To be clear, China’s appetite for Canadian crude began to grow when the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion known as TMX began funneling Albertan oil to British Columbia’s Pacific coast in May. The trend only accelerated after Trump took office with a declared intent to impose tariffs on China and others.

“Given the trade war, its unlikely for China to import more US oil,” Wenran Jiang, president of the Canada-China Energy & Environment Forum, said in a telephone interview. “They are not going to bank on Russian alone or Middle Eastern alone. Anything from Canada will be welcome news.”

Although Chinese oil imports from North America are dwarfed by those the Middle East and Russia, Canada’s oil sands provide one of the few sources of relatively cheap, dense, high-sulfur grades of crude that many of China’s most-advanced refineries are equipped to process.

For Asian refiners, Middle East crude with similar characteristics — such as Iraq’s Basrah Heavy — are expensive relative to Alberta oil given the strength in the region’s Dubai benchmark.

Translation

貿易戰加劇，中國石油需求從美國轉向加拿大

(彭博社)—由於貿易緊張局勢升級，中國煉油商把採購美國石油量削減了約 90%，而進口加拿大原油數量創了紀錄。

開通不到一年的加拿大西部輸油管擴建工程, 為中國和其他東亞石油進口國提供了更多機會來獲取阿爾伯塔省油砂地區的豐富原油儲備。

根據追蹤水運石油和天然氣運輸情況的 Vortexa Ltd. 數據顯示，3 月中國從溫哥華附近管道終點港進口的原油數量飆升至前所未有的 730 萬桶，預計本月將超過這一數字。同時，中國每月進口的美國石油量已從6月的峰值2,900萬桶驟降至 300 萬桶。

北美原油流向中國的變化（全球最大原油進口國）是美國總統特朗普重塑全球貿易關係舉措所造成的經濟和戰略干擾的又一例證。

需要明確地說的是，當跨山輸油管擴建計劃（簡稱 TMX）於 5 月開始將阿爾伯塔省的石油輸送到卑詩省的太平洋海岸時，中國對加拿大原油的需求開始增多。特朗普上任並宣布要對中國和其他國家徵收關稅後，這一趨勢進一步加速。

中加能源與環境論壇主席 Wenran Jiang 在電話採訪中表示： “鑑於貿易戰，中國不太可能進口更多美國石油”;“他們不會單單只指望俄羅斯或中東。任何來自加拿大的, 都是會受到歡迎的消息。”

儘管中國從北美進口的石油與中東和俄羅斯相比相形見絀，但加拿大的油砂是少數幾個相對廉價、濃度高、高硫原油的來源之一，中國許多最先進的煉油廠都具備加工這種原油的能力。

對於亞洲煉油商來說，具有類似特徵的中東原油（如伊拉克巴士拉重質原油）, 由於該地區受強勁的迪拜基準影響，相對於阿爾伯塔省原油而言價格是昂貴。

              So, Chinese crude imports from Canada have soared to an unprecedented level. Meanwhile, Chinese imports of US oil are reducing. Apparently, this shift in importing more Canadian crude oil is an example on how China is reacting to US President Donald Trump’s moves to reshape global trade relations.

Note:

1. Dubai Benchmark (迪拜基準): In the context of finance and investment, 'Dubai Benchmark' usually refers to a standard based on the economic performance, prices or interest rates of the Dubai region. These benchmarks are often used to evaluate and compare the performance of other markets or investments. (Gemini AI)