*Freshly-released official headline stats show that China imported 12.49mn b/d of crude oil in August, the third highest figure on record after June this year (12.73mn b/d) and the all-time high of 12.99mn b/d hit in June 2020.

*At an average of 11.42mn b/d for the first eight months of 2023 volumes are up 15% year-on-year and on track to smash 2020’s record annual figure of 10.86mn b/d. (CONTINUED - 202 WORDS)