China is the skirt of US sanctions to stay on the senior Iranian oil buyers

For years, China was buying Iranian oil in large quantities, and the US sanctions on Tehran were barely placed in that trade, thanks to the supply chain of shadows and the supply system of Yuan, which exceeds the US dollar.

The Chinese customs have not exposed any oil that has been shipped from Iran since July 2022. However, ship tracking data from the KPLER Analysis Company indicated that China’s Iranian imports have risen since then, as approximately 17.8 million barrels per day (MBD) has multiplied in 2024 from the level of 2022.

In the first five months of this year, these imports remained at a high level of 6.8 MB, and little changed from the same period in 2024.

China is still the largest consumer of Iranian crude. The US Energy Information Administration suggested in Report in May Nearly 90 % of crude oil exports in Iran and condensate continued to flow to China.

Iran faced some of The broadest sanctions imposed by the United States In any country, Washington sought to strangle the main source of the system for revenue that was used to finance its nuclear program and militias such as Hamas and Hezbollah. The Trump administration was actively imposed New penalties for tankers It participates in facilitating Iranian crude to China.

However, this has put a few exports on Iranian oil exports, Brian Lesen, the global energy strategy in RBC Capital Markets, said that the material market had not seen any long -term influence on the flow of Iranian oil since the Trump administration took office.

Iranian and petrochemical oil sales were estimated by up to $ 70 billion in 2023, according to American conference report last year.

Foreign oil buyers are withdrawn to Iranian oil exporters because they are often sold with a discount compared to the neglected Russian suppliers in the Persian Gulf.

Iranian light oil has been circulated by about $ 6 to $ 7 cheaper than the UAE UAE ore in Zakum-an unreasonable degree and with similar quality as Iran Light-price $ 64 a barrel.

While some Iranian shipments are charged directly from Iran to China, the majority are subject to multiple transportation from ships to ships, often in Middle East Bay or Strait MalagaWhere Iranian oil, which is transferred, is transferred to the approved ships to non -shipments before shipping to China.

“() The Middle East is a multi -original oil market, and if the shipment is transferred from the ship to the ship, it is not easy to follow as soon as the documents are replaced.”

Analysts said that the tankers loaded in Iran will do the so -called “deception” – where they broadcast the information of the fake carrier course to hide their participation in this trade.

These payments are usually made in Renminbi and Through the small banks approved by the United StatesBuyers protect from exposure to the United States -controlled system, which avoids exposing large international banks in China to the risks of US sanctions.

“Due to the lack of exposure to the dollar, the exclusion of the fast payment systems is not a major obstacle to oil flows to continue,” Brian said. Swift is the world’s main payment network, which is dominated by Greenback.

US President Donald Trump earlier this week Surprised markets with a publication On the social fact, China can continue to buy Iranian oil, in a clear ignorance of its previous policies to climb oil exports in Iran. United States crude oil prices The following 6 % fell Comment.

A senior White House official later told CNBC that Trump’s comments do not indicate the relaxation of US sanctions.

Kpler’s Xu saw that Trump’s statements as a “calculated comparison” aimed at encouraging Iran to support the ceasefire and recovery in nuclear talks, with reference to “goodwill” to China before the next round of commercial negotiations.

“It is too early to determine whether this indicates a possible concession of Iranian sanctions,” she said, noting that Washington’s possibility of slowing the pace of new sanctions – which would support these purchases by Chinese tea.

“There is still a clear conclusion for Iran despite the ceasefire, for the material oil market, we expect oil exports to continue as usual.”

Speaking at a press conference at the NATO summit this week, Trump said that Iran “will need funds to return this country to the form”, which raises hopes that mitigating the “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran on the table.