From Financial Times:
High global prices have prompted China to stagger oil purchases for its strategic reserves, which are unlikely to exceed the equivalent of one month’s imports by 2010, said Beijing’s energy chief.
Beijing did not want to invest heavily when oil was expensive, especially as aggressive stockpiling by the fastest-growing main economy could affect international markets, said Chen Deming, a vice-chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, the economic planning agency.
The projection was conservative and based on a personal estimate, he said. Under International Energy Agency guidelines, countries should keep strategic reserves equivalent to 90 days’ worth of imports.[Full Text]