Latest news with #TrixieYap
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Exclusive-US sanctions on China refiners over Iran oil disrupt operations, sources say
By Siyi Liu, Trixie Yap and Chen Aizhu SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Recent U.S. sanctions on two small Chinese refiners for buying Iranian oil have created difficulties receiving crude and led them to sell product under other names, sources familiar with the matter said, evidence of the disruption that Washington's stepped-up pressure is inflicting on Tehran's biggest oil buyer. The targeting of independent refiners, known as teapots, marked an escalation in Washington's efforts to cut off Tehran's export revenue as President Donald Trump seeks to pressure Iran into a deal over its nuclear programme. Washington's sanctions against Shandong Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical in March and Shandong Shengxing Chemical in April have also begun to deter other, larger independent Chinese refiners from buying Iranian crude, three of the sources said. About five plants in the refining hub of Shandong province have halted purchases of Iranian oil since last month, worried about being hit by sanctions, two trading executives said. That wariness is the main reason discounts for Iranian Light have widened to $2.30-$2.40 a barrel against ICE Brent from about $2 a month ago, the executives and another source said. Among the inconveniences faced by the two sanctioned teapots, state-run Shandong Port Group, the main port operator in the province, has denied entry to vessels loaded with crude they have purchased, five trade sources said. That follows the port group's January ban on port calls by U.S.-sanctioned tankers. Shandong Port Group and Shengxing did not respond to requests for comment. A Luqing executive declined to comment. Large state banks have also stopped providing Luqing with operational capital for purchasing crude, forcing it to work with smaller banks, four of the sources said. The sources declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. Beijing says it opposes unilateral sanctions and defends as legitimate its trade with Iran, which ships about 90% of its oil exports to China. However, Chinese customs data has not shown any oil shipped from Iran since July 2022, with Iranian crude imports instead labelled as originating from Malaysia or other countries. SHIPPING, SALES HEADACHES The Shandong Port Group's banning of cargoes for the two refineries has forced them to discharge at other ports, according to three sources. In one case, the tanker Bei Hai Ming Wang carrying oil for the Shengxing refinery was rejected when it sought to land at the Laizhou port, controlled by Shandong Port Group, around April 21, according to a source familiar with the matter. It eventually unloaded on May 2 at the privately owned Wantong Crude Oil Terminal in neighbouring Dongying, data from analytics firm Vortexa showed. In another sign of trading disruption from the sanctions, two Asia-based oil product traders who had previously dealt with Luqing said they stopped doing so after it was sanctioned. In addition, no shipments of gasoline blendstock have been recorded since the end of March out of Laizhou port, used by Luqing for most of its blendstock exports, Kpler and LSEG shiptracking data showed. That contrasts with the first three months of this year when 83,000 metric tons (701,000 barrels) of methyl tertiary butyl ether, a key gasoline blendstock export, were shipped from Laizhou, accounting for 15% of China's total outflow of the blendstock. State giant CNOOC stopped supplying crude to Shandong Haihua Group's 40,000 barrel-per-day refinery, operated by Luqing, shortly after the U.S. sanctions were announced, three trade sources and a Shandong-based Chinese oil market consultant said. CNOOC did not respond to a request for comment. Calls to Haihua went unanswered. The two teapots have also begun selling product through new entities, according to seven trade sources, with Luqing using Shouguang Jiaqing Petroleum Sales and Shengxing selling via Shandong Xuxing Petrochemical. Calls to the two entities seeking comment went unanswered.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Exclusive-US sanctions on China refiners over Iran oil disrupt operations, sources say
By Siyi Liu, Trixie Yap and Chen Aizhu SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Recent U.S. sanctions on two small Chinese refiners for buying Iranian oil have created difficulties receiving crude and led them to sell product under other names, sources familiar with the matter said, evidence of the disruption that Washington's stepped-up pressure is inflicting on Tehran's biggest oil buyer. The targeting of independent refiners, known as teapots, marked an escalation in Washington's efforts to cut off Tehran's export revenue as President Donald Trump seeks to pressure Iran into a deal over its nuclear programme. Washington's sanctions against Shandong Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical in March and Shandong Shengxing Chemical in April have also begun to deter other, larger independent Chinese refiners from buying Iranian crude, three of the sources said. About five plants in the refining hub of Shandong province have halted purchases of Iranian oil since last month, worried about being hit by sanctions, two trading executives said. That wariness is the main reason discounts for Iranian Light have widened to $2.30-$2.40 a barrel against ICE Brent from about $2 a month ago, the executives and another source said. Among the inconveniences faced by the two sanctioned teapots, state-run Shandong Port Group, the main port operator in the province, has denied entry to vessels loaded with crude they have purchased, five trade sources said. That follows the port group's January ban on port calls by U.S.-sanctioned tankers. Shandong Port Group and Shengxing did not respond to requests for comment. A Luqing executive declined to comment. Large state banks have also stopped providing Luqing with operational capital for purchasing crude, forcing it to work with smaller banks, four of the sources said. The sources declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter. Beijing says it opposes unilateral sanctions and defends as legitimate its trade with Iran, which ships about 90% of its oil exports to China. However, Chinese customs data has not shown any oil shipped from Iran since July 2022, with Iranian crude imports instead labelled as originating from Malaysia or other countries. SHIPPING, SALES HEADACHES The Shandong Port Group's banning of cargoes for the two refineries has forced them to discharge at other ports, according to three sources. In one case, the tanker Bei Hai Ming Wang carrying oil for the Shengxing refinery was rejected when it sought to land at the Laizhou port, controlled by Shandong Port Group, around April 21, according to a source familiar with the matter. It eventually unloaded on May 2 at the privately owned Wantong Crude Oil Terminal in neighbouring Dongying, data from analytics firm Vortexa showed. In another sign of trading disruption from the sanctions, two Asia-based oil product traders who had previously dealt with Luqing said they stopped doing so after it was sanctioned. In addition, no shipments of gasoline blendstock have been recorded since the end of March out of Laizhou port, used by Luqing for most of its blendstock exports, Kpler and LSEG shiptracking data showed. That contrasts with the first three months of this year when 83,000 metric tons (701,000 barrels) of methyl tertiary butyl ether, a key gasoline blendstock export, were shipped from Laizhou, accounting for 15% of China's total outflow of the blendstock. State giant CNOOC stopped supplying crude to Shandong Haihua Group's 40,000 barrel-per-day refinery, operated by Luqing, shortly after the U.S. sanctions were announced, three trade sources and a Shandong-based Chinese oil market consultant said. CNOOC did not respond to a request for comment. Calls to Haihua went unanswered. The two teapots have also begun selling product through new entities, according to seven trade sources, with Luqing using Shouguang Jiaqing Petroleum Sales and Shengxing selling via Shandong Xuxing Petrochemical. Calls to the two entities seeking comment went unanswered.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
China pivots to Europe for used cooking oil exports as tariffs hit shipments to US
By Chen Aizhu and Trixie Yap SINGAPORE (Reuters) -China's used cooking oil (UCO) exports to the United States, its largest buyer, are set to plunge in coming months due to steep tariffs, forcing sellers to divert shipments to Europe and elsewhere, industry players said. With Trump administration is now charging 125% import tariff on Chinese UCO from this month. Shipments to the U.S., valued at $1.1 billion last year, are tumbling with the last cargoes sailing around late March and early April before trade grinds to a halt, said three China-based UCO traders. China's UCO exports hit an all-time high last year at nearly 3 million metric tons or worth $2.64 billion, according to Chinese customs. "For the time being, arbitrage to the U.S. is closed and we think it will remain so for the medium term," said Richard Dickinson, Shanghai-based head of trading Amarus Trading, one of the largest dealers of Chinese UCO. "Some of the exports will be diverted to Europe and new markets in Asia such as Korea, Thailand, Malaysia and India." At least four new Sustainable Aviation Fuel facilities, which use UCO as an ingredient and totalling at least 700,000 metric tons per year of production capacity, have started up or will begin operation by this year in Thailand, Malaysia and Japan, according to industry insiders. Exports to the U.S. have fallen since last December as Beijing removed tax rebates for UCO exports and also due to the new U.S. clean fuel tax policy that discourages the use of imported UCO, and the latest tariffs only exacerbates the situation, a shipper of the fuel said. The European Union, which mandated a 2% SAF use this year, is likely to become the top destination for at least half of China's UCO shipments in the coming months, the traders said. CHINA DEMAND UP Chinese UCO exports is expected to fall this year as demand from its nascent SAF sector rises, traders and biofuel industry officials. Dickinson and another Beijing-based senior biofuel trader estimated China's UCO exports to ease to 150,000 to 200,000 tons each month from April onward, 20-40% below the average monthly shipments in 2024. The other sources declined to be named as they are not authorised to speak to the media. New SAF plants such as Zhejiang Jiaao Enprotech launched late 2024 and several other plants starting or slated for start-up in the coming few months - owned by Haixin Energy Technology, Haike Chemical in Shandong and Blue Whale Bioenergy in Zhejiang - are set to become new UCO users, according to industry sources familiar with these plants. Chinese SAF producers are using 100,000 to 120,000 tons of UCO a month currently, a volume set to climb as new plants begin operations, according to industry estimates. China began a pilot scheme last September of SAF use at four domestic airports in Beijing, Chengdu, Zhengzhou and Ningbo. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
China pivots to Europe for used cooking oil exports as tariffs hit shipments to US
By Chen Aizhu and Trixie Yap SINGAPORE (Reuters) -China's used cooking oil (UCO) exports to the United States, its largest buyer, are set to plunge in coming months due to steep tariffs, forcing sellers to divert shipments to Europe and elsewhere, industry players said. With Trump administration is now charging 125% import tariff on Chinese UCO from this month. Shipments to the U.S., valued at $1.1 billion last year, are tumbling with the last cargoes sailing around late March and early April before trade grinds to a halt, said three China-based UCO traders. China's UCO exports hit an all-time high last year at nearly 3 million metric tons or worth $2.64 billion, according to Chinese customs. "For the time being, arbitrage to the U.S. is closed and we think it will remain so for the medium term," said Richard Dickinson, Shanghai-based head of trading Amarus Trading, one of the largest dealers of Chinese UCO. "Some of the exports will be diverted to Europe and new markets in Asia such as Korea, Thailand, Malaysia and India." At least four new Sustainable Aviation Fuel facilities, which use UCO as an ingredient and totalling at least 700,000 metric tons per year of production capacity, have started up or will begin operation by this year in Thailand, Malaysia and Japan, according to industry insiders. Exports to the U.S. have fallen since last December as Beijing removed tax rebates for UCO exports and also due to the new U.S. clean fuel tax policy that discourages the use of imported UCO, and the latest tariffs only exacerbates the situation, a shipper of the fuel said. The European Union, which mandated a 2% SAF use this year, is likely to become the top destination for at least half of China's UCO shipments in the coming months, the traders said. CHINA DEMAND UP Chinese UCO exports is expected to fall this year as demand from its nascent SAF sector rises, traders and biofuel industry officials. Dickinson and another Beijing-based senior biofuel trader estimated China's UCO exports to ease to 150,000 to 200,000 tons each month from April onward, 20-40% below the average monthly shipments in 2024. The other sources declined to be named as they are not authorised to speak to the media. New SAF plants such as Zhejiang Jiaao Enprotech launched late 2024 and several other plants starting or slated for start-up in the coming few months - owned by Haixin Energy Technology, Haike Chemical in Shandong and Blue Whale Bioenergy in Zhejiang - are set to become new UCO users, according to industry sources familiar with these plants. Chinese SAF producers are using 100,000 to 120,000 tons of UCO a month currently, a volume set to climb as new plants begin operations, according to industry estimates. China began a pilot scheme last September of SAF use at four domestic airports in Beijing, Chengdu, Zhengzhou and Ningbo. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
25-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
China exempts some goods from US tariffs to limit trade war pain
By Andrew Silver, Trixie Yap and Brenda Goh (Reuters) - China has exempted some U.S. imports from its 125% tariffs and is asking firms to identify critical goods they need levy-free, according to businesses notified, in the clearest sign yet of Beijing's concerns about the trade war's economic fallout. The dispensation, which follows de-escalatory statements from Washington, signals that the world's two largest economies were prepared to rein in their conflict, which had frozen much of the trade between them, raising fears of a global recession. Beijing's exemptions - which business groups hope would extend to dozens of industries - pushed the U.S. dollar up slightly and lifted equity markets in Hong Kong and Japan. 'As a quid-pro-quo move, it could provide a potential way to de-escalate tensions," said Alfredo Montufar-Helu, a senior adviser to the Conference Board's China Center, a think tank. But, he cautioned: "It's clear that neither the U.S. nor China want to be the first in reaching out for a deal." China has not yet communicated publicly on any exemptions. A Friday statement by the Politburo, the Communist Party's elite decision-making body, focused on efforts to maintain stability at home by supporting firms and workers most affected by tariffs. The readout, which followed the Politburo's regular monthly meeting, showed that Beijing was also ready to hunker down and fight a trade war of attrition if needed to outlast Washington in enduring the pain from the breakdown of their relationship. A Ministry of Commerce taskforce is collecting lists of items that could be exempted from tariffs and is asking companies to submit their own requests, according to a person with knowledge of that outreach. The ministry said on Thursday it had held a meeting with more than 80 foreign companies and business chambers in China to discuss the impact of U.S. tariffs on investment and the operation of foreign firms in the country. "The Chinese government, for example, has been asking our companies what sort of things are you importing to China from the U.S. that you cannot find anywhere else and so would shut down your supply chain," American Chamber of Commerce in China President Michael Hart said. Hart added some member pharmaceutical companies had reported being able to import drugs to China without tariffs. He believed the exemptions were drug-specific, not industry-wide. The chief executive of French aircraft engine maker Safran said on Friday it had been informed last night that China had granted tariff exemptions on "a certain number of aerospace equipment parts" including engines and landing gear. The tariff exemptions under consideration by Beijing could provide cost relief for companies in China and take pressure off U.S. exports at a time when the Trump administration has shown signs of wanting to make a deal with Beijing. The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China also said it had raised the issue of tariff exemptions with the commerce ministry and was awaiting a response. "Many of our member companies are significantly impacted by the tariffs on critical components imported from the U.S.," President Jens Eskelund said. A list of 131 categories of products said to be under consideration for tariff exemptions was circulating on Chinese social media platforms and among some businesses and trade groups on Friday. Reuters could not verify the list, which included items ranging from vaccines and chemicals to jet engines. Huatai Securities said the list corresponded to $45 billion worth of imports to China last year. China's customs agency and Ministry of Commerce did not reply to requests for comment. China's foreign ministry said it was not familiar with tariff exemption plans, redirecting queries to "relevant authorities". LASTING FIGHT While Washington has said the trade stand-off with China is economically untenable and already offered tariff exemptions to some electronic goods, China has repeatedly said it is willing to fight to the end unless the U.S. lifts its 145% tariffs. But China's economy headed into the trade war with rising unemployment, deflationary pressures and heightened concern that a mounting backlog of unsold exports could drive domestic prices even lower. While China ran a trillion-dollar trade surplus in 2024, it also relies on the United States for key imports, including the petrochemical ethane needed to make plastics, and some drugs. Big pharmaceutical companies including AstraZeneca and GSK have at least one manufacturing site in the U.S. for drugs sold in China, according to Chinese government data. Major ethane processors have already sought tariff waivers from Beijing because the U.S. is the only supplier. Exemptions may be only a tiny step in a long process. "For those U.S.-manufactured goods that cannot be procured from any other country, I do think there is an interest to exempt them of import tariffs, even if this is done unilaterally," Montufar-Helu said. "But for some other goods like energy and agricultural commodities, I think the calculation is very different given that there are other sources that China can tap.' Sign in to access your portfolio
