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Data from the General Administration of Customs shows that China received 3.55 million tonnes during April, the lowest monthly volume this year.
This compares to approximately 4.64 million tonnes in April 2026.
During January-April, Chinese LNG terminals received 17.94 million tonnes of LNG.
This marks a 10.3 decrease compared to the same period last year, the customs data shows.
In January, Chinese LNG terminals received 6.67 million tonnes, a rise of 10.5 percent year-on-year. February LNG imports dropped 13.9 percent year-on-year to 3.86 million tonnes, while March LNG imports decreased 19.2 percent year-on-year to 3.95 million tonnes.
Natural gas imports, including pipeline gas and LNG, dropped by 13 percent year-on-year to 8.42 million tonnes in April.
China’s pipeline imports dropped 3.1 percent year-on-year to 4.87 million tonnes, the data shows.
During January-April, pipeline imports dropped 1.8 percent to 18.59 million tonnes.
China has been affected by the ongoing crisis in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, but not as much as other Asian countries.
The country has been reloading LNG volumes in March and April and sending them to other Asian countries as prices soared amid the Middle East conflict.