Japan's Iran crude imports surge

摘要

Tokyo-Japan's oil imports from Iran surged 10% year on year in June, marking the second consecutive month of gains and indicating refiners are rushing to take as many cargoes as possible before US sanctions come into effect in November. The rise, which lifted import volumes of Iranian cargoes to 148,312 b/d, came despite a 14.7% year-on-year drop in total crude imports to 2.40 million b/d during the peak refinery turnaround season, preliminary data from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry released Tuesday showed.