Imports rose to 50.6 million tons for the first seven months, although July imports of 6.8 million tons, were below the 7.7 million tons notched in June. Last year, China imported nearly 70 million tons of crude oil.

During the previous seven months, refined oil products rose to 15.7 million tons, an increase of 56.2% over the same period last year.

The boom has been attributed to the robust economic growth this year, which has spurred refineries to boost crude processing to meet the demands for refined oil products.

The report said that among the 15.7 million tons of imported refined oil products, more than 90% consist of fuel oil with surging electricity demands in coastal regions of South and East China encouraging demands for fuel oil among small power plants.