China shipped 6.01 million tons of refined fuel in August, a 12.7% increase from a year earlier, pushing total volumes above the levels seen before the Middle East war closed the Strait of Hormuz in March. The rebound follows a near-total export ban that Beijing imposed in early March, days after the conflict erupted and cut off a critical crude artery. For the first eight months of 2026, however, exports are still down 9.6% versus the same period last year, a hangover from the spring restrictions that allowed only limited flows to Southeast Asia.
The March ban and its aftermath
The government’s initial response to the Hormuz closure was blunt: a blanket prohibition on fuel shipments that lasted until officials began relaxing the curbs later in the spring. The August data shows the relaxation has taken hold, though the year-to-date deficit underscores how much ground was lost during the blackout.
Diesel drives the rebound
Diesel led the August surge, jumping 42.1% to 1.33 million tons as a global shortage of the fuel deepened. Over the first eight months, diesel exports have risen 5.9% to 4.84 million tons, the only major product category to show growth on a cumulative basis. Gasoline moved the other way, falling 17.5% in August to 700,000 tons.
Jet fuel hits a record
Jet fuel shipments climbed 41.4% to 2.55 million tons in August, reaching an all-time high for a single month. The strength reflects recovering aviation demand and the absence of any quota on the product during the latest easing phase.
Inventories signal a potential clampdown
Domestic stockpiles are tightening. Gasoline inventories at state-owned majors dropped 2.9% last week to their lowest since 2022, while diesel stocks fell 2.4% to a 15-month low, according to JLC International data cited by Bloomberg. The drawdown raises the prospect that Beijing could reinstate curbs to protect local supply, repeating the cycle that defined the first half of the year.