Lloyd’s List: China Seeks Stronger Oil Ties with Saudi Arabia

“The world’s largest oil producing company and the world’s second-largest crude oil tanker charterer are expected to sign a deal this week that boosts China’s growing presence in the international tanker industry and cements its relationship with Middle Eastern oil suppliers at a time of strained international relations in the region. . . . China’s rising oil imports, as the country invests in infrastructure and transport to support an increasingly affluent population along its eastern seaboard, are reflected in the country’s tanker chartering activity. The latest tanker report by shipbroker Poten & Partners showed that Chinese charterers continue to extend their influence over the dirty tanker market.”