According to Chinese customs results, Saudi Arabia remained China's top crude supplier in the first two months of this year. Imports from Iraq and Oman increased dramatically, while exports from Norway reached new highs.

In January and February, China imported 1.8 million barrels per day and 1.95 million barrels per day of Saudi oil, accounting for 17 percent of total crude imports during the time. With deliveries of 1.7 million barrels per day, Saudi Arabia has remained China's top supplier so far this year, a role it has held for the second year in a row in 2020.

The customs data came a day after Saudi Aramco's chief executive, Amin Nasser, said that China's energy security will be the company's top priority for at least the next half-century.

China's overall crude imports were 10.54 million barrels per day in January and 11.78 million barrels per day in February. According to customs reports, it’s rising from a two-year low of 9.1 million barrels per day in December.

In February, China increased its imports from Iraq and Oman to 1.51 million b/d and 1.1 million b/d, respectively, rising upto 36 %and 46 % from the previous year. Last month, Russia's imports reached 1.92 million b/d, the second-highest amount on record, up 23 % from January and 15 % higher than February 2020. China continued to increase imports from Norway, reached a new high of 425,000 barrels per day in February, up from 187,000 barrels per day a year earlier.

In January, China received over 30% of Norway's crude exports, the highest percentage on record. According to Norwegian customs details, about 481,000 b/d of Norwegian crude was shipped to China in January, up from 401,000 b/d in December.

After 122,000 b/d was shipped in December, customs figures showed no imports from Iran in January or February. However, unofficial data suggests that China's Iranian imports have increased this year, with more than 500,000 b/d of unreported crude arriving in China in January. Another 400,000 b/d is arriving in February and March, according to the data from oil analytics company Vortexa. A large amount of Iranian crude continues to arrive in China through complex ship-to-ship transfer operations in Southeast Asia.

Imports from the United States totaled 376,000 b/d in February, falling from nearly half a million b/d in December but rising from zero a year ago.