Events such as the Winter Olympics near Beijing and Lunar New Year have impacted crude demand
Chinese crude demand growth to slow
China’s demand is set to increase again this year, but at a slower pace after hitting yet another record high in 2021
China’s energy demand is being buffeted by mounting economic headwinds and one-off short-term disruptions, including February’s Winter Olympics near Beijing. Oil demand in particular could decline quarter-on-quarter in Q1 2022 because of reduced refinery throughput in northeast China, owing to governmental desire for improved air quality during the games and March’s Winter Paralympics. Both events likely impacted short-term crude demand along with early February’s week-long Lunar New Year holiday, as businesses shut for the holiday. In addition to refining demand, other emissions-intense activities such as factory operations, power generation and general traffic movement were also asked to t
Also in this section
13 March 2026
Brussels is again weighing a cap on gas prices amid the Hormuz crisis, but the measure could backfire by deterring the LNG cargoes Europe urgently needs
12 March 2026
Emergency oil stocks provide a last line of defence to oil market shocks, so the IEA’s unprecedented 400m bl release represents something of a double-edged sword
12 March 2026
LPG could rapidly expand access to clean cooking across Africa and prevent hundreds of thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution each year, but infrastructure shortages and regulatory barriers are slowing investment and market growth
11 March 2026
Missiles over Dubai and disruption in Hormuz are testing the emirate’s reputation—and shaking the energy hub at the centre of the Gulf economy
