American Petroleum Institute testimony--tariff threat would hurt US O&G

quote:

---

The latest US tariffs threatened against Chinese imports would hamper US energy exports, hurt domestic energy security, and push China to import more oil and gas from countries like Iran and Russia, the American Petroleum Institute argued Tuesday during US Trade Representative hearings.

---

quote:

---

"China's expected retaliation against US crude oil, refined products, and LNG would disadvantage US exports and could cascade into US domestic production," Aaron Padilla, API's senior adviser for international policy, told the USTR in written comments.

"US market share in China for LNG and other petroleum products may be difficult to restore with China turning to alternative suppliers," he added.

China -- Asia's top importer of US crude oil in 2018 -- has put sharp brakes on light sweet and medium sour US crude purchases since October amid the US-China trade dispute.

China imported 6,991 b/d of crude from the US in the first quarter, down sharply from 316,771 b/d in Q1 2018, according to data from China's General Administration of Customs.

US crude flows to China recovered to 116,750 b/d in April, the latest GAC data showed, but only a few Chinese refineries have booked US crude cargoes for May-July delivery, according to traders and analysts with knowledge of the matter.

China has backed off from buying US crude despite no actual tariffs being implemented to date, and a tense standoff in trade relations between Beijing and Washington makes it unlikely that crude flows will rebound sharply anytime soon.

For LNG flows, the US/China dispute initially affected spot US LNG cargoes, but has recently started to have a more severe impact on long-term investments in US liquefaction and export projects.

---