经济广角:中国企业向伊朗出售汽油

CHINESE COMPANIES SUPPLY IRAN WITH PETROL
Chinese state companies this month began supplying petrol to Iran and now provide up to one third of its imports in a development that threatens to undermine US-led efforts to shut off the supply of fuel on which its economy depends.

The sales come in spite of moves over the past year by international companies, including BP and Reliance of India, to stop selling petrol to Iran, and highlight the difficulties of implementing sanctions aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Traders and bankers familiar with Iran's purchasing said the gap left by the withdrawal of such long-standing suppliers had been filled by Chinese petrol this month.

While Iran is one of the world's biggest Oil producers its refineries are dilapidated and it suffers from runaway petrol demand because of generous subsidies.

Foreign ministers from the world's big powers are meeting today in New York to discuss how to convince Iran to curtail its nuclear programme, which Tehran maintains is for peaceful purposes.

Oil traders said that Chinese-state owned oil companies were selling the petrol through intermediaries. The sales are legal as fuel imports are not at present included in sanctions against the country.

A Chinese official in Washington said: “Chinese enterprises conduct normal trade relations with Iran, strictly speaking within the relevant UN resolutions.

“On the UN side, the Chinese government position on the Iranian nuclear issue has been very consistent and clear: China has been working with the relevant parties together for the peaceful resolution of the issue through diplomatic means.”

Other Asian and European oil companies and trading houses also sell petrol to Tehran.

Lawrence Eagles, head of commodities research at JPMorgan, said: “We estimate, based on what we are hearing in the market, that 30,000-40,000 barrels a day of Chinese petrol is making its way from the Asian spot market to Iran via third parties.” His comments reflect the view of several leading traders supplying Iran with petrol.

Iran usually imports 120,000 b/d. The traders did not disclose the identity of the Chinese companies or the names of the intermediaries. In the past, Chinese petrol has been resold through intermediaries within Asia.

Beijing's leading oil companies Sinopec and CNPC have signed $4bn contracts to help Tehran to pump more oil out of its fields, many of which are declining with age.

The US and some of its allies want to shut off Tehran's petrol imports, which have long been depicted as the Iranian economy's most vulnerable point.

中国国有企业本月开始向伊朗供应汽油，如今提供多至三分之一的伊朗进口汽油。这一动态可能损害以美国为首的努力，即切断伊朗经济所依赖的燃料供应。

过去一年，包括英国石油(BP)和印度信实集团(Reliance)在内的国际公司，已纷纷停止向伊朗出售汽油。中国的销售突显了执行旨在遏制伊朗核雄心的制裁措施的难度。

熟悉伊朗购买操作的交易员和银行家们表示，上述长期供应商停止供应所留下的缺口，本月已被中国汽油填补。

尽管伊朗是世界最大产油国之一，但该国炼油厂年久失修，而且由于慷慨的补贴，汽油需求已到失控地步。

全球各大国的外长们今日在纽约会晤，讨论如何说服伊朗遏制其核计划——德黑兰坚称，其核计划是出于和平目的。

石油交易员们表示，中国国有石油企业通过中介向伊朗销售汽油。这些销售是合法的，因为燃料进口目前不在针对伊朗的制裁范围内。

一名中国官员在华盛顿表示：“中国企业与伊朗开展正常的贸易关系，严格说来是符合联合国相关决议的。

“在联合国方面，中国政府在伊朗核问题上的立场是非常一致和明确的：中国一直在与有关各方共同努力，致力于通过外交途径和平解决这个问题。”

其它亚洲和欧洲石油公司及贸易公司也向伊朗销售汽油。

摩根大通(JPMorgan)大宗商品研究主管劳伦斯•伊格尔斯(Lawrence Eagles)表示：“根据我们在市场上听到的消息，我们估计每天有3万至4万桶中国汽油从亚洲现货市场通过第三方流入伊朗。”他的话反映了多名向伊朗供应汽油的领先交易员的看法。

伊朗通常每天进口12万桶汽油。相关交易员没有透露中国企业或中介的名称。以往，中国汽油也是通过中介在亚洲市场转售的。

中国领先的石油公司——中石化(Sinopec)和中石油(CNPC)，已签署40亿美元的合约，帮助伊朗因长期开采而趋向枯竭的油田提高产量。

美国及其部分盟国希望切断伊朗的汽油进口——长期以来，汽油进口一直被形容为伊朗经济最脆弱的要害。