1970-01-01 08:33:27
China's oil imports to fuel its booming economy jumped to a new monthly high in July, rising 39 percent over the same month a year ago, according to data released Friday.
China imported 103.8 million barrels of oil in July, or an average of about 3.4 million barrels a day, according to the General Administration of Customs.
China is the world's second-biggest oil consumer after the United States. Growing imports have led to strains abroad as state-owned oil companies try to secure supplies by signing deals with Sudan and other isolated governments.
The previous monthly record for oil imports was 103.7 million barrels in April.
China supplied its own energy needs for decades from domestic fields but became a net importer in the 1990s. Demand has soared amid a boom that saw the economy expand by 11.9 percent last quarter.
China's oil imports rose by 20 percent last year to 1.1 billion barrels. Imports accounted for 47 percent of oil consumption in 2006, and could pass the symbolic 50 percent mark this year.
Beijing is trying to promote use of nuclear, solar and other energy sources to curb environmental damage from burning oil and coal and to reduce reliance on imported energy.
The government also is in the midst of a five-year effort to improve China's poor fuel efficiency by cutting energy consumption per unit of economic output by 20 percent.
Source:AP