China boosts imports of fuel oil blended from Russian barrels

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SINGAPORE — China’s independent refineries are ramping up imports of discounted fuel oil blended from Russian barrels to use as low-cost feedstock amid a shortage of government crude oil import quotas for some of them, according to trade sources and data.

Western sanctions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including the looming Feb. 5 embargo and price cap on refined products, have been pushing Russian fuel oil barrels eastward into Asia at attractive discounts since last year.

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These have been flooding the ship-to-ship transfer hubs of Malaysia and United Arab Emirates’ Fujairah since the second quarter of 2022. Traders…