China passes U.S. as world's top oil importer.

China has tentatively passed the U.S. as the biggest importer of oil in the world, with EIA data showing that China's incoming shipments hit 6.12M bpd in December and those of the U.S. fell to 5.98M bpd, the lowest since February 1992. It's worth pointing out that tax maneuvering may have distorted December data, while U.S. imports tend to recover in January. However, with U.S. production surging, it may not be long before China's new status is cemented.