China Halts Imports of US Oil in Negative Sign for Shale Drillers

China halted purchases of US crude in March as trade tensions between the two countries ramped up, casting a shadow over demand for oil produced from American shale formations.

The lack of such purchases by the world’s largest oil buyer compares with imports of 149,000 barrels of American crude a day in February, according to data from the US Census. China has bought US crude in every month since March 2020, except for August last year, when the country cut total purchases because of shaky economic growth.