China buys $7.5 billion of Russian energy with crude oil at record

China continued to snap up Russian energy products last month, including a record quantity of crude oil, lifting purchases to $7.47 billion -- about $1 billion more than April and double the amount of a year ago.

The increase in shipments came as the war in Ukraine entered a fourth month and other buyers continued to shy away from Russian oil, gas and coal. Chinese demand also started to show some improvement as virus restrictions were loosened, easing logistical snarls and allowing industrial production to rebound. 

China’s total imports from Russia accelerated in May, surging 80% on year to $10.27 billion, as