Zee Beam News

01.06.2006 13:06 [Neftegaz.ru] - China's apparent demand for oil climbed 10.8 percent in April from a year earlier, the strongest rise since 2004, after a rise in State-set fuel prices encouraged refiners to boost supplies to the domestic market. The world's second-largest oil consumer used 6.69 million barrels per day (bpd) last month, calculations based on official data showed, despite a fall in crude imports as refiners shunned soaring global markets. The spring sowing season and a booming economy also pushed up diesel consumption by more than 10 percent, although shortages spreading across the southeast for most of April limited consumption in some areas.