Tariff Dispute Threatens China's Thirst for U.S. Oil

[jpak]

https://www.wsj.com/articles/tariff-dispute-threatens-chinas-thirst-for-u-s-oil-1532424601

For the American oil industry, which President Donald Trump has declared is entering an era of “energy dominance,” an escalating trade fight with China would represent a lost opportunity for U.S. efforts to break into a strategic market.

China has been the biggest new buyer of the millions of barrels of oil unlocked by U.S. shale companies from dense rock formations. Now the second-largest consumer of U.S. oil exports after Canada, China has seen its demand rise 200-fold over past two years and last year bought a fifth of American crude-oil exports. That booming growth leaves U.S. oil exporters vulnerable in the trade fight between the world’s two biggest economies.

For now, U.S. oil isn’t among the 545 U.S. exports, from sea urchins to soybeans, that China has imposed retaliatory tariffs on in response to the Trump administration’s tariffs on more than $50 billion of Chinese goods. But crude oil is on China’s list of 114 exports targeted for tariffs should the trade battle intensify.

“From the U.S. perspective, China is a significant market, but [U.S. shipments are] just 3% of Chinese imports,” said Suresh Sivanandam, Asia refining senior manager at consultancy Wood Mackenzie. “There’s more of the U.S. losing out here than China.”

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