The Iranian oil sanction waivers have been called off by the U.S. This is applicable to all buyers including China. Having said that China received its first crude oil from Iran. It was delivered to a Chinese refinery complex. This crude oil was delivered by National Iranian Tanker Company in a vessel named Salina. This tanker carried around 1 million barrels of crude oil. The tanker took almost a month to travel from Iran to Jinxi. It was transferred to a Refining and Chemical Complex in China. China was independently tracking the tanker and confirming its arrival was a gesture of resistance towards the U.S sanctions.
China is following a new government policy and the crude oil transfer is a part of it. The Jinxi complex where the crude oil was transferred is owned by the Chinese conglomerate China National Petroleum Corporation. With this event China has resumed imports from Iran, specifically for crude oil. The U.S waivers ended on May 2 and the Iranian tanker set out for China on May 28. This was the first mark of resistance from China towards the U.S import bans.
This move by China and Iran will set a foundation for Iranian export business. They are depending on how and how much does China focus on its imports. Marketers and business analysts all across the globe are trying to predict the future of this transaction. Liquid Bulk Principal Analyst for Maritime & Trade at IHS Markit, Fotios Katsoulas believes that even though the U.S is pushig to ban Iranian exports, China is not willing to completely cut ties with Iran over oil. But, it’s a steady race for China. The imports will be limited and slow for a prolonged time. China has not been very happy about the U.S – China trade war and conflicts and it is definitely criticizing the U.S’s decision on sanction waivers over Iranian exports. Beijing is the strongest opponent to this sanction.