Chinese refiners have sold roughly 500,000 metric tons of diesel for loading in November so far, according to traders and Reuters calculations based on trade data, with multi-year low domestic stockpiles limiting exports, Reuters reports.

Fuel exports from China, Asia’s major swing supplier, have been volatile since the US-Israel-Iran war broke out in February as the Chinese government imposed curbs to prioritise domestic supplies, requiring refiners to obtain approval for sales each month.

However, since China began relaxing export controls in July, diesel exports have surged to multi-year highs to 1.33 million tons in August and 1.8 million tons in September thinning domestic inventories, analysts said.