South Korea’s Crude Imports Slip in December, Fall 3.5% in 2009

摘要

South Korea’s imports of crude slipped 5.9% to 2.28 million barrels perday in December, putting the total average for the year at 2.29 million b/d, some 3.5% lower from a year ago, according to data from Korea National Oil Corp. Mideast imports continued to decline in December, led by the United Arab Emirates, whose volumes tumbled 42.8% to 250,000 b/d, which relegated it to the third spot, instead of its usual position of second place. This was followed by a 24.3% fall in Qatari imports to 159,000 b/d. Saudi Arabia remained the country’s largest supplier with volumes at 679,000 b/d, despite slipping 5.3% from a year ago. Iraqi imports more than doubled to 212,000 b/d.