China rations diesel again a week after price hike

By Chen Aizhu

BEIJING, Nov 11 (Reuters) - China's state refiners are rationing diesel again at petrol stations on the booming east coast just a week after shortages made Beijing hike fuel prices by 10 percent, industry officials and clients said on Sunday.

The shortage that occurred in at least three coastal provinces stoked fresh speculations that Beijing may need to further lift its regulated prices to appease loss-making refineries and bring in more imports to boost stocks.

Petrol stations in eastern city Ningbo run by Sinopec Corp (0386.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) or PetroChina (0857.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) either put out signs "diesel ran out" or made lorry drivers queue for hours for a maximum refill per visit of 200 yuan, or just under 40 litres, drivers told Reuters.

At some outlets, policemen helped maintain order as angry drivers refused to hand over the hose when the gauge hit the prescribed limit, a driver surnamed Guo said.

Chen Xiaoxiang, a manager at a logistics firm, said he suspected operators were hoarding oil in anticipation of more price rises.

"Everybody says that prices are going to rise again, that's probably why these stations are holding back supplies," he said.

Some independent petrol stations were illicitly quoting their pump rates at 6.19 yuan per litre, or 20 percent above the government-set retail rates, implying market speculation for another price increase by that margin, industry officials said.

Sinopec fuel marketing officials in eastern Shandong and southern Guangdong province reached by Reuters said sporadic diesel rationing was also taking place in their regions, both manufacturing hubs and top fuel users in the country.