Japan's crude oil imports grew 5.9% in June from a year earlier as increased purchases from the United States helped offset lower supplies from the Middle East.
The rise to 2.1 million barrels per day (10.03 million kilolitres) was the first increase in four months, according to data from Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry released on Friday.
Imports from the Middle East tumbled 32.4% in June, with shipments from Japan's two largest suppliers — the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia — down 27.3% and 30.6%, respectively. The decline followed steeper drops of 68% in April and 49.7% in May.
But imports from the United States surged 73-fold from a year earlier to about 680,000 bpd (3.24 million kl). Japan also imported crude from Ecuador, about 40,200 bpd (192,000 kl), and Russia, about 25,500 bpd (122,000 kl). (1 kilolitre equals 6.2898 barrels)
Japan sourced 94% of its crude imports from the Middle East in 2025. In June, that share was just 62.3%, marking a ninth consecutive month of year-on-year drops.
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