China's Jan-Feb refinery output up 15% on solid demand for fuels
China's daily refinery throughput rose 15% in the first two months of the year, from a low base a year earlier, as fuel demand remains solid and refineries rush to hike production ahead of maintenance season.
Refinery processing reached 114.24 million tonnes in the January-February period, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Monday, equivalent to about 14.13 million barrels per day (bpd). The agency didn't disclose numbers for January and February separately.
The daily rate is about the same level as in December 2020, up from 12.07 mln bpd in Jan-Feb 2020 and also above the 12.68 million bpd recorded in the first two months of 2019.
Chinese refineries slashed output in the first quarter last year as the rapid spread of the coronavirus decimated fuel demand.
Chinese refined fuel consumption has staged a strong rebound from coronavirus-induced weakness as the economy recovered and government stimulus kicked in.
The latest data also showed China's crude oil production in the first two months rose 0.4% from a year earlier to 32.08 million tonnes, or 3.97 million bpd. That compared with an average of 3.89 million bpd for 2020.
Meantime, China's natural gas output expanded 13.5% in January-February from a year earlier to 34.8 billion cubic metres, extending a jump that saw near 10% growth for full-year 2020.
(tonne=7.3 barrels for crude oil conversion) (Reporting by Chen Aizhu and Muyu Xu; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)
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