China's natural resource imports declined in May

China's imports of most natural resources fell in May, according to customs data released today. Reuters analysts noted that the decline affected oil, coal, iron ore, and copper.

Last month, Chinese companies purchased 10.97 million barrels of crude oil per day, a decrease of over 6% from April and more than 9% from the two-year high recorded in March. However, Reuters expects China's imports to rebound in June as oil supplies from Iran, which have been affected by US sanctions, recover.

China's copper purchases in May totaled 427,000 tonnes, down 11,000 tonnes from April and 87,000 tonnes from a year ago. For the first five months of 2025, copper imports have decreased by 6.7%. Reuters experts attribute this decline to rising copper prices in anticipation of US tariffs. Chinese companies are expected to increase purchases once metal costs decrease.

Natural gas was a rare exception to the downward trend. In May, China increased its imports of natural gas by 4.5% compared to April, although the figure was still down 11% year-over-year.