China logged a drop in its LNG imports for the second month in a row, following record imports of the fuel during the last year.
China became the world’s largest LNG importer last year, overtaking Japan. The country’s LNG imports reached 78.93 million tonnes in 2021, hitting a new record high due to rising demand from the power generation and industrial sectors.
However, during January and February of this year, LNG imports dropped when compared to the last year. This could be related to sky-high spot LNG prices, prompting Chinese buyers to hold off on buying spot volumes.
In January, LNG imports dropped by 6.7 percent to 7.81 million tonnes, while in February they decreased 11.8 percent to 4.86 million tonnes, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.
During the January-February period, China imported 12.68 million tonnes of LNG. Compared to the same period last year, LNG imports dropped by 8.7 percent.
On the other side, China’s pipeline gas imports increased during the first two months of this year.
Pipeline imports rose by 6.3 percent to 7.18 million tonnes, the data said.