Chinese output slumps to fresh low

China

BEIJING , August 12, 2016 – China has been relegated to the world’s fifth-largest crude producer, as China’s National Bureau of Statistics production figures for July released on Friday showed output had declined for a fifth month in a row.

Production in July was down 8.1% year-on-year to reach some 3.95 million bopd, which marks the lowest daily average in five years. Measured over the first seven months of the year, production averaged 4.07 million bopd, or 5.1% less than in the same period in 2015.

Iraq is now the fourth-largest oil producer in the world, and at current daily average output, China will soon be overtaken by Iran. According to statements by Iranian Minister of Petroleum Bijan Namdar Zangeneh earlier this week, the country has ramped up production to 3.85 million bopd.

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