China’s Gasoline, Kerosene Stockpiles Rise to Highest Since 2010

Gasoline and kerosene stockpiles in China, the world’s second-largest oil consumer, rose to the highest levels in at least four years even as exports of the fuels surged last month.

Gasoline inventories increased by 1.8 percent in March from a month earlier while kerosene supplies gained 4.5 percent, China Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals, a newsletter published by the official Xinhua News Agency, said today. Stockpiles expanded to an estimated 7.48 million metric tons and 1.87 million, respectively, the highest since January 2010 when Bloomberg started compiling the data.

Fuel supplies climbed as refiners boosted operating rates, according to OGP. Companies including China Petrochemical & Chemical Corp. and PetroChina Co. processed 41.9 million tons of crude last month, or about 9.9 million barrels a day, up 2.6 percent from a year ago, data from the National Bureau of Statistics in Beijing showed on April 16. China exported the most gasoline in more than three years in March and shipped the second-highest volume of jet fuel, the General Administration of Customs reported this week.

Diesel stockpiles dropped 5.7 percent last month while commercially held crude inventories fell 2.9 percent, according to OGP. The newsletter stopped reporting volumes in July 2010.