China's oil demand to grow faster in 2010

China’s oil demand will increase faster with a better domestic economy in 2010, leading to a heavier dependence on imports, says Zhu He, senior engineer of Sinopec’s Economics and Development Research Institute. According to the oil expert, the country’s apparent oil consumption is estimated to increase by 5% year-on-year to 427 million metric tons in 2010, while its crude oil output will likely increase slightly from a year earlier to 193 million tons. Zhu predicts that China’s net crude oil imports will exceed 210 million tons this year. (February 26, 2010)