Russia overtakes Saudi Arabia as China’s largest oil supplier

China’s purchases of Russian oil rose 24% year-on-year in January and February, according to official data released Tuesday, allowing Russia to overtake Saudi Arabia as the neighbor’s largest supplier of crude oil.

China’s purchases from Russia averaged about two million barrels a day, according to Chinese customs. Total imports of Russian oil by China amounted to 84.61 billion dollars (78.58 billion euros). The average price per barrel was around USD 73.62 (EUR 68.38), which is 11.71% less than in the same period of the previous year.

Thus, in the first two months of 2023, Russia overtook Saudi Arabia to become the largest supplier of crude oil to China.

In the first two months of this year, China imported about 1.73 million barrels per day from Saudi Arabia, down 4.7% from last year. However, the average price per barrel increased by almost 4% compared to last year.

China can buy energy from Russia without violating sanctions imposed by the US, Europe and Japan. Beijing is ramping up shopping to take advantage of Russian discounts. This causes friction with Washington and allied countries, boosting Moscow’s cash flow and limiting the impact of sanctions.

Russian President Vladimir Putin assured his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping during a visit to Moscow on Tuesday that Russia is capable of meeting China’s growing energy needs.

“Russian companies are able to meet China’s growing energy demand,” Putin said to Xi during talks between two official delegations in the Kremlin, French news agency AFP reported.

China is distributing data for January and February together because the Lunar New Year, the main holiday for Chinese families who have a week-long holiday, falls on a different date every year, in the first two months of the year. This holiday causes a break in economic activity, which is reflected in comparison with the previous year.