Drone strikes in Saudi Arabia may push China to diversify oil supply, analysts say
- Country has become increasingly reliant on crude from the gulf state over past year as it reduced imports from suppliers like the US and Iran
- That could leave Beijing in a precarious position, according to experts
China, the world’s largest importer of crude oil, has grown increasingly reliant on Saudi crude over the past year, official figures show, as it has reduced imports from other large suppliers like the United States and Iran in recent months amid trade tensions with Washington and US sanctions on Iran.
For now, Beijing is monitoring the situation, with a spokesperson for the National Bureau of Statistics on Monday saying the overall impact “remains to be seen”.
Analysts agreed it was too early to tell what impact the attacks would have on China’s crude oil supply as it depended on how quickly Saudi Arabia could get a large proportion of its damaged oilfields back online. But concerns over instability and the length of time the oil facilities remained down could prompt Beijing to look for alternatives, they said.