China's crude oil output drops in H1

BEIJING - China's crude oil output dropped 4.8 percent year on year to 100.45 million tons in H1, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

The drop came as China's oil companies plan to reduce output due to low crude prices. Sinopec, the largest refiner, plans to cut production by 7.5 percent this year, while PetroChina, the largest producer, aims to reduce output by 4.8 percent.

From January to June, China refined 256 million tons of crude oil, up 8.9 percent year on year. Output of refined oil products rose 7.1 percent to 159 million tons, while consumption of refined products rose 4.4 percent to 141 million tons.

In the same period, natural gas output rose 2.9 percent to 67.5 billion cubic meters, while imports surged 21.2 percent to 35.6 billion cubic meters.

Consumption of natural gas rose 9.8 percent year on year to 99.5 billion cubic meters, according to the NDRC.