China 'to be net exporter' of oil products

China is likely to become a net exporter of oil products this year as domestic refiners continue to request export quotas, said international commodities data provider Platts.

In an unprecedented development, China became exactly balanced in oil products trade for the first 10 months of this year, with imports and exports staying at exactly the same volume, Platts said on Wednesday.

"There appears to be more room for exports to grow right until the end of the year," said Song Yanling, a senior analyst with Platts China.

Refined oil product imports tumbled 22.2 percent year-on-year to 2.28 million metric tons in October, while exports soared 30.3 percent to 3.14 million tons, according to the General Administration of Customs.

As a result, China was a net exporter of oil products in October, with volume hitting a record high of 860,000 tons.

Diesel exports soared 22.4 percent to 300,000 tons in October while domestic production was up 5.6 percent to 15.36 million tons.

Demand for diesel in October climbed 5.3 percent to 15.06 million tons－the fastest rate since September 2012.

Gasoline exports reached a four-year high of 670,000 tons in October, while domestic output soared 14.9 percent to 9.54 million tons.

Li Li, research and strategy director at consultancy ICIS C1 Energy, said the reason for the drop was that domestic refineries tend to reduce the use of fuel oil as a raw material when they have more choices in the market.

"It is certain that China will export more oil products as domestic capacity continues to grow," she said.