China Has Bought Up to 90 Percent of Iran's Oil Exports Since War Began

According to Al Jazeera, China, Iran's largest trading partner, has bought up to 90 percent of Iran's crude oil exports since the US and Israeli war on Iran began in late February 2026, even though Iranian crude accounts for only about 2 percent of China's overall energy mix. China's major state owned refiners, such as Sinopec and PetroChina, have shunned Iranian oil for years, leaving the trade largely to independent "teapot" refiners with limited exposure to the dollar based global financial system.

Al Jazeera also reported that Chinese President Xi Jinping held a brief meeting with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, before again calling for a diplomatic resolution to the Iran war during his first visit to Egypt in a decade on Tuesday. A summit between the Chinese and US presidents is also scheduled for September 24 (2 Mehr 1405).