据石油新闻2021年4月22日新加坡报道，由于中东原油官方售价（OSP）持续上调，韩国当地炼油商逐渐转向青睐北美原油，而非波斯湾原油供应，再加上布伦特原油与迪拜原油价差的大幅上升，使得美国原油供应对亚洲买家更具吸引力，韩国3月份美国原油月进口量近一年来首次超过了1000万桶。
韩国海关总署发布的最新统计数据显示，3月份韩国进口美国原油144.8万吨或1061万桶，比2月份增长了22.1%，是2020年4月进口1483万桶美国原油以来的最高月度进口量。
然而，与去年同期相比，韩国3月份美国原油进口量下降了19.9%，这是连续第11次下降。
由于韩国当地炼油企业因国内对汽油、柴油，特别是航空燃油的需求在新冠肺炎疫情大流行期间持续低迷而不愿购买大量的富含轻质和中质馏分油的原油等级（包括WTI米德兰原油和鹰福特原油），亚洲第四大石油消费国韩国自2020年第二季度末以来一直在大举削减美国原油进口量。
韩国石油协会的一名市场研究分析师说，尽管如此，3月份运抵韩国的大约1100万桶美国原油表明，由于中东原油价格看起来昂贵，韩国主要炼油厂的炼油原料采购和套利交易思维发生了转变，而国内和亚洲地区的中间馏分油需求随着流动性限制措施的放松而缓慢改善。
在今年第二季度和第三季度，韩国预计平均每月将进口至少3艘巨型油轮或大约600万桶美国原油。
李峻 编译自 石油新闻
原文如下：
S Korea's March US crude imports surpass 10 mil barrels as Middle East OSPs rise
South Korea's US crude imports in March surpassed the 10 million barrel/month mark for the first time in almost a year, as local refiners gradually favor North American barrels over Persian Gulf supply due to the extended uptrend in the Middle Eastern official selling prices, while the sharp rise in the Brent-Dubai price spread makes US supply attractive for Asian buyers.
South Korea imported 1.448 million mt, or 10.61 million barrels, of US crude in March, up 22.1% from February and the highest monthly shipment since 14.83 million barrels imported in April 2020, latest data released by the Korea Customs Service showed.
On a year-on-year basis, however, US crude imports in March were down 19.9%, marking the eleventh consecutive decline.
Asia's fourth biggest oil consumer had been aggressively cutting back on US crude imports since the late second quarter of 2020 as local refiners were reluctant to buy high volumes of the light and middle distillate-rich crude grades including WTI Midland and Eagle Ford due to dismal domestic demand for gasoline, diesel and especially jet fuel amid the prolonged coronavirus pandemic.
Still, around 11 million barrels of US crude that arrived in March indicate the shift in refinery feedstock procurement and arbitrage trading mindset for major South Korean refiners as Middle Eastern prices look expensive, while domestic and regional middle distillates demand slowly improves amid easing movement restriction measures, said a market research analyst at Korea Petroleum Association.
South Korea is expected to import at least three VLCCs, or around 6 million barrels, of US crude on average per month over the second and third quarter of 2021, according to refinery feedstock trading managers and market analysts in Seoul.
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