chinarussiarelations

China is capitalizing on a major shift in Russian oil flows! 🇨🇳🇷🇺
$KAIA | $AXS | $DASH

Russia's flagship Uralsbcrude is now selling to Chinese refiners at record discounts with prices dropping to unprecedented lows, around $10-12 below Brent in recent deals (some cargoes even wider in late 2025). This comes after India sharply reduced its purchases of Urals, hitting a three-year low in December 2025 due to tighter U.S. sanctions on Russian oil firms cooling demand.

As a result:
- Deliveries to India plummeted...
- Opening the floodgates for China!
- Urals imports to China surged to a record ~400,000-405,000 barrels per day in early 2025 data (highest since mid-2023), per Kpler and Reuters reports.

While China has traditionally favoured ESPO blend from Russia's Far East, it's now snapping up more discounted Urals from Western ports a unique opportunity despite the longer shipping distances.

This dynamic is putting serious pressure on Russian export revenues while giving Chinese buyers a bargain on crude amid global energy shifts.

What do you think will this discount window last, or will other buyers step back in? Oil market watchers, drop your takes below! 🛢️📉

#OilMarkets #RussianOil #ChinaRussiaRelations