BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s imports rose on the previous year in April, as refiners prepared for a fully recovered Labour Day holiday travel season, official data showed on Thursday.
Crude imports in April totalled 44.72 million metric tons, or about 10.88 million barrels per day (bpd), data from the General Administration of Customs showed.
That represented a 5.45% increase from the relatively low 10.4 million bpd imported in April 2023.
China saw more than 1.3 billion passenger trips over the five day Labour Day holiday that began on May 1, up 2.1% from a year earlier, state media outlet Xinhua reported.
Highway traffic was up 2.1% while air trips surged 8.1%, Xinhua said.
Domestic airline seat capacity in April was up 1.3% on last year, data from consultancy OAG showed.
China’s manufacturing sector continued to see muted recovery in April. The official purchasing managers’ index fell to 50.4 in April from 50.8 in March, staying above the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction, yet indicating a slower expansion in activity versus the previous mouth.
