China Oil Industry Set to Rebound in 2015, but Recovery Not Plain Sailing, Report Warns

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Jan 20, 2015, 02:30 ET

SINGAPORE, January 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

China's oil industry will rebound in 2015 from the lowest growth this century, a new report predicts. However, rising demand may not be enough to pull some parts of the country's struggling refining industry out of trouble, and international market participants hoping that Chinese demand will rescue falling oil prices are likely to be disappointed.

The authoritative ICIS China Petroleum Annual Report forecasts that 2015 will see a jump in China's oil demand growth to 4.1% over the next 12 months, a major leap upwards from 2014's 1.1% growth. Surging imports of petrochemicals feedstocks naphtha and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) look set to be the primary drivers of this growth, however, with demand for automotive and industrial fuels still in the doldrums. ICIS forecasts that the exports of gasoil will continue to grow, as China shifts its development focus to urbanisation (avoiding, for now, the use of diesel cars) and the country's service industries.

ICIS China is the largest energy and petrochemicals market analyst business in China - a part of the global ICIS business, and a division of UK-based Reed Elsevier. With a vast array of data and information at its disposal, the company's newly launched ICIS China Petroleum Annual Report is the go-to reference work for Chinese market participants both in and outside the country.

2015 will also see strong growth in Chinese crude oil imports, ICIS predicts in the newly-published report, with net imports up by 7% for the year The jump, however, is being driven in large measure by a need to fill strategic stocks, and does not reflect underlying actual demand growth. Opportunistically, as international prices fell in late 2014, China has already begun buying large quantities of crude, and will likely complete its Strategic Reserve programme ahead of schedule.

For further details or to access a copy of the report, please contact ICIS at http://www.icis.com/china-petroleum-report

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About ICIS

ICIS is the world's largest petrochemical market information provider and has fast-growing energy and fertilizer divisions. Our aim is to give companies in global commodities markets a competitive advantage by delivering trusted pricing data, high-value news, analysis and independent consulting, enabling our customers to make better-informed trading and planning decisions. We have more than 30 years' experience in providing pricing information, news, analysis and consulting to buyers, sellers and analysts.

With a global staff of more than 800, ICIS has employees based in Houston, Washington, New York, London, Montpellier, Dusseldorf, Karlsruhe, Milan, Mumbai, Singapore, Guangzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, Yantai, Tokyo and Perth. ICIS is a division of Reed Business Information, part of Reed Elsevier Plc.

About Reed Business Information

At Reed Business Information we provide information and online data services to business professionals worldwide. Customers have access to our high-value industry data, analytics, information and tools. Our strong global brands hold market-leading positions across a wide range of industry sectors including banking, petrochemicals and aviation where we help customers make key strategic decisions every day. RBI is part of Reed Elsevier, a leading global provider of data, information and solutions for professional customers.

SOURCE ICIS