Malaysia Surpasses Saudi Arabia as China’s Second-Largest Crude Oil Supplier

In October 2024, China imported 1.78 million barrels per day (Mb/d) of crude oil from Malaysia, making it the second-largest supplier after Russia (2.32 Mb/d) and ahead of Saudi Arabia (1.37 Mb/d). For the three months ending October 2024, Malaysia held its position as China's second-largest supplier, averaging 1.68 Mb/d compared to Russia's 2.22 Mb/d. Despite Malaysia’s limited oil production, it is likely that Iranian oil is being declared as Malaysian in Chinese customs data to circumvent sanctions.