SINGAPORE: China’s oil refinery output in July fell 6.1% from a year earlier, official data showed on Thursday, down for a fourth month as thin processing margins and tepid fuel demand discouraged production. Refiners processed 59.06 million metric tons of crude oil in July, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed, equivalent to 13.91 million barrels per day (bpd), the lowest since October 2022. The July rate fell from 14.19 million bpd in June and 14.87 million bpd in July 2023.

Output for the first seven months of the year was 419.15 million tons, or 14.37 million bpd, down 1.2% from the corresponding period last year, the data showed.

This is the second consecutive month the data has showed the year-to-date volumes have been down from the year-ago period since the end of 2022, according to Reuters’ records.

Gasoline demand remained subdued despite a pickup in travel during the summer school holidays that span July and August as consumers chose to travel abroad or opted for high-speed rail for long-distance trips instead of driving.

Chinese consultancy JLC estimated July’s apparent consumption of the motor fuel rose 3.3% versus June, a growth rate significantly slower than a year earlier. A greater penetration of electric vehicles in the world’s largest auto market also continued to reduce gasoline use. Half of all vehicles sold in China in July were either new pure electric vehicles (EV) or plug-in hybrids.

Planned overhauls at PetroChina’s WEPEC and Ningxia refineries and Sinopec’s Qilu and Maoming plants capped runs at state majors, while thin refining margins weighed on independent refiners’ processing rates.

Consultancy Oilchem estimated independent refineries, mostly situated in the eastern refining hub of Shandong province, operated at 56.11% of capacity last month, down 7.3 percentage points on the year.