Asia’s crude oil imports are returning to pre-conflict levels, but the recovery is not translating into balanced downstream supply.
Refined fuel flows remain constrained, creating a structural mismatch that is keeping product prices elevated despite the normalization of raw material inflows.
The divergence highlights a growing bottleneck in the global energy supply chain.
While the Strait of Hormuz disruptions have eased enough to allow crude shipments to resume, refining capacity and product distribution networks have not fully recovered.
This imbalance is particularly acute in Asia, where demand for gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel remains robust against a backdrop of limited product availability.
Market participants are closely monitoring this split between crude and refined markets.