22 October 2014 – Japan imported less crude during September but its thirst for liquefied natural gas rose compared to a year earlier, according to reports.
Japan’s customs-cleared oil imports fell 3.7% in September from the same month a year earlier, while LNG imports rose 10.5%, Reuters reported citing figure from the Ministry of Finance.
Japan, the world’s fourth-biggest crude buyer, imported 3.39 million barrels per day of crude last month, the preliminary data showed.
Japan’s imports of LNG totalled 7.28 million tonnes last month, up 10.5% from a year earlier.
For the first half of the fiscal year ending in September, crude import volumes dropped 8.9%, while LNG imports climbed 3.7%.
*Reuters