Beijing tightened jet fuel exports after the war broke out, forcing Canberra to seek alternative suppliers
2-MIN READ2-MINRalph JenningsPublished: 3:30pm, 15 May 2026Australia’s trade minister will visit China in an effort to shore up fuel supplies that have run short this year because of bottlenecks in the Strait of Hormuz during the US–Israeli war in Iran.Australian Trade and Tourism Minister Don Farrell told a press conference that he would travel to China to meet Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, after a stop in Japan on Monday.
“Very much the topic of the day will be how do we continue to ensure reliable fuel supplies into this country,” Farrell said, according to an emailed transcript of the press conference on Friday. “And of course, particularly in the area of jet fuel, China is very important in that equation.”
“The Australian government’s increased travel to China underscores a strategy to diversify fuel sources, maintain flight services and control the domestic market while bolstering national reserves,” said Kannan Govindan, director of the Centre for Sustainable Operations and Resilient Supply Chains at Adelaide University in Australia.
“This shift allows Chinese energy firms to secure dominant long-term supply contracts across the Asia-Pacific region,” he added.
