China crude oil output down

China's crude oil output in January edged down 2.1 percent year on year to 17.69 million tonnes, data from the top economic planner showed on Friday.

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said that China refined 38.66 million tonnes of crude in the month, down 1.8 percent year on year, Xinhua reported.

Output of refined oil products also shrank 1.8 percent to 24.41 million tonnes, while consumption of refined products dropped 2.9 percent to 22.09 million tonnes.

In the same period, natural gas output rose 4.1 percent to 13.1 billion cubic metres, while imports gained 22.6 percent to 7.6 billion cubic metres.

Consumption of natural gas climbed 17.6 percent to 22.3 billion cubic metres, according to the NDRC.