China’s rapid, unbridled growth in crude imports over the past 20 years looks to be over with obvious implications for the tanker market, a top shipbroker has warned.
The Asian powerhouse has seen its oil demand grow from 4.7m barrels per day (bpd) in 2000 to 13.8m bpd in 2020, an average annual growth rate of 5.5%.
“For many years, China’s crude oil imports will continue to be a key source of employment for large crude tankers,” US broker Poten & Partners said.
