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Shadow Fleet And Discounts: How China Profits From Iran's Oil Amid Gulf Tensions | Exclusive

Last Updated:March 11, 2026, 11:53 IST Beijing is reportedly securing Iranian crude at $8-$12 per barrel below Brent benchmarks, saving billions of dollars annually while strengthening its energy security. As tensions in West Asia disrupt global energy flows and raise fears over shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, intelligence sources say China has quietly emerged as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the crisis—securing discounted Iranian oil, gathering valuable military data, and expanding its strategic reach in the region. Top Indian intelligence sources told CNN-News18 that Beijing's deep ties with Tehran and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)-linked maritime networks have allowed it to maintain a steady flow of crude even as geopolitical tensions roil global markets. China today buys roughly 80-90 per cent of Iran's oil exports, amounting to abou t 1.3-1.6 million barrels per day, according to the sources. During periods in early 2026, imports are estima...

China’s exports surge in Jan-Feb despite waning trade with the U.S.

HONG KONG--China's exports jumped nearly 22% in the first two months of the year from a year earlier, powered by a surge in shipments of computer chips, autos and electronics. The export figures released by China's customs agency on Tuesday were much better than economists had forecast. They far exceeded the 6.6% annual pace of growth recorded in December. Shipments to the U.S. fell 11% in January and February, narrowing from a 30% drop in December. Exports to the European Union increased almost 28% while those to Latin America climbed 16%. Exports to the rest of Asia, including Japan and India, also were sharply higher. China's exports have been a bright spot for its economy despite tensions with the U.S. Chinese exports climbed 5.5% for 2025 as its trade surplus surged to a record of nearly $1.2 trillion. Higher shipments to other regions have helped offset weaker exports to the U.S. after U.S. President Donal...

China delivers domestically developed offshore fracturing vessel Haiyang Shiyou 696, largest of its kind in the world

China's first domestically developed large-scale offshore fracturing vessel, Haiyang Shiyou 696, sails in waters off Zhoushan, East China's Zhejiang Province. Photo: Screenshot from CCTV's website China's first domestically designed and built integrated large-scale offshore fracturing vessel, Haiyang Shiyou 696, was delivered in Zhoushan, East China's Zhejiang Province, on Tuesday, marking a breakthrough in the country's offshore oil and gas fracturing technology, state broadcaster CCTV News reported. The vessel, the world's largest of its kind, is designed to support large-scale offshore fracturing operations across China's seas, including batch fracturing of multiple wells as well as operations for gas wells and ultra-deep formations, the developer China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) said in a statement. The latest development is expected to enhance the country's offshore energy development and help safeguard national energy securi...

China condemns 'evil designs' of Taiwan premier's Japan visit

BEIJING: China on Monday (Mar 9) condemned the "evil designs" of Taiwan Premier Cho Jung-tai's rare visit to Japan over the weekend, on a trip he said was to support the island's baseball team and was private. Cho flew to Japan on Saturday to watch Taiwan play in the World Baseball Classic, in what Taiwanese media said was the first trip to the country by a premier since Japan and Taiwan broke formal diplomatic ties in 1972. He was reportedly accompanied by Taiwan's representative to Japan and the island's sports minister. China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, routinely lambasts any overseas trips by its leaders. "The person you mentioned harboured evil designs; acting stealthily and sneakily, he ran to Japan to engage in little tricks of seeking independence and making provocations," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters in Beijing. "Japan's indulgence of provocation and unbri...

‘No popular support’: China warns against government change in Iran

China has warned against seeking government change in Iran amid the ongoing US-Israeli offensive, saying any such move lacks public support. "Plotting a 'colour' revolution or seeking government change will find no popular support," China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi told a news conference on the sidelines of an important annual gathering in Beijing, state-run Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday. Wang also called for the sovereignty of Iran and all countries to be respected, and demanded an "immediate stop to military operations" in the Middle East to prevent an escalation and avoid a spillover of the conflict. "This is a war that should not have happened, and it is a war that does no one any good," Wang said. "Force provides no solution, and armed conflict w ill only increase hatred and breed new crises." The people of the Middle East are the true masters of this region, and the region's affairs should be determined by the c...

MOFA rejects China’s Taiwan claims

By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) yesterday rejected Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi's (王毅) comments about Taiwan, criticizing China as a "troublemaker" in the international community and a disruptor of cross-strait peace. Speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of the Chinese National People's Congress, Wang said that Taiwan has always been a territory of China and that it would be impossible for it to become its own country. The "return" of Taiwan to China was the natural outcome of the Chinese people's resistance against Japan in World War II, and that any pursuit of independence was "doomed to fail," he said, claiming that the Cairo Declarat...

Chinese vice-premier stresses shared duty in Hong Kong’s executive-led governance

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Record China iron stockpiles heap pressure on budget revenues

China's iron ore stockpiles have hit a record high, stoking concerns for the budget revenues that flow from Australia's biggest export earner, as Beijing revives its stoush over pricing with mining giant BHP. The amount of iron ore awaiting processing in China has jumped 25 per cent since August to a record 163.3 million tonnes, as cooling property sector demand flows through to miners of the key steel-making ingredient. Loading...

What does Taiwanese leader William Lai’s rare ‘mainland China’ reference mean?

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