While US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China is stockpiling crude amid the Iran war, the numbers suggest Beijing is facing a supply crunch
2-MIN READ2-MINCarol Yangin BeijingPublished: 9:30pm, 15 Apr 2026Though high-level officials in Washington have accused China of undermining global energy security by “hoarding” oil during the US-Israeli war on Iran, import and inventory data suggest Beijing is facing its own supply pressures as the conflict drags on.
He also criticised Beijing for limiting exports of certain goods during the crisis.
In response, Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said the global energy market’s current turmoil is rooted in “the tense situation in the Middle East”, and called for an immediate halt to military operations there, noting that China has been playing a “constructive role” in seeking an end to the conflict.
“Securing energy supplies is a rational act under the current circumstances, and also a matter of fair trade,” said Cui Shoujun, an international relations professor at Renmin University of China in Beijing.
“A blockade of Iranian ports has been fully implemented as US forces maintain maritime superiority in the Middle East,” US Central Command said in a statement on Wednesday, noting it has “completely halted” economic trade going into and out of Iran by sea.
