BEIJING, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- China refined 27.27 million tonnes of oil in December, down 2.3 percent year-on-year, as demand shrank and product inventories piled up, the top economic planner said in a web statement on Wednesday.
In November, China processed 29.79 million tonnes of oil, up 7 percent year-on-year.
Inventories at PetroChina and Sinopec, the two major oil refiners, hit record highs this month, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said. It didn't give details.
This month, the two companies cut pump prices nationwide, driving fuel prices below the national reference prices issued by the NDRC on Dec. 18, which were 0.91 yuan (0.13 U.S. cents) per liter of gas and 1.08 yuan per liter of diesel.
PetroChina further lowered pump prices for gas and diesel by 0.3 yuan and 0.5 yuan, respectively, on Dec. 25. Sinopec planned a second round of price cuts in Shanghai as of New Year's Day.
Both organizations said their cuts were intended to boost sales around the Chinese Lunar New Year, usually a slow time for refined product sales.
However, industry experts said the cuts were probably intended to help the refiners cut inventories that have been piling up. Earlier this year, when world crude oil prices soared, the companies worked to ensure supplies by increasing their refined product reserves.
"Now with weakening domestic demand amid the global economic slowdown, oil shortages are no longer a problem," said Dong Xiucheng, professor with the China University of Petroleum.
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