Iran accepts renminbi for oil as China negotiates US sanctions

Iran is accepting renminbi for some of the crude oil it supplies to China, industry executives in Beijing and Kuwait and Dubai-based bankers have said, partly as a consequence of US sanctions aimed at limiting its nuclear programme.Tehran is spending the currency, which is not freely convertible, on goods and services imported from China.Most of the oil that goes from Iran to China is handled by the Unipec trading arm of Sinopec, China’s second-largest oil company, and through another trading company called Zhuhai Zhenrong, according to the oil executives.The trade is worth as much as $20bn-$30bn annually, according to industry estimates, but a share of this is in barter form. The executives said Zhuhai Zhenrong paid Iran by providing services such as drilling.“The global financial crisis accelerated the shift from the west to the east,” said the chief executive of one bank in Dubai. “Such measures [as the US sanctions against Iran] will now enhance the acceptability of the renminbi as a transaction currency.”The US applied sanctions on Zhuhai Zhenrong this yearSanctions imposed by Washington force financial institutions to choose whether to do business with Iran or with the US, and the US has spearheaded restrictions on Tehran’s central bank. The sanctions and a diplomatic push have led to a reduction in Iranian oil imports by Japan, South Korea, India and China, which together buy more than 60 per cent of Iran’s crude oil exports.India, which already settles its oil purchases from Iran in rupees, was again urged yesterday by Hillary Clinton, US secretary of state, to reduce its imports.The renminbi purchases began some months ago. Initially the non-barter portions of the transactions were settled in Beijing through renminbi accounts but, as a result of US pressure, domestic banks such as Bank of China had stopped dealing with Iran, the oil executives and bankers said.Instead, much of the money is transferred to Tehran through Russian banks, which take large commissions on the transactions, the people said.Sinopec, Zhuhai Zhenrong and Iran’s central bank declined to comment.Additional reporting Leslie Hook in Beijing, Monavar Khalaj in Tehran and James Fontanella-Khan in Delhi北京的业内高管和科威特、迪拜的银行家表示，伊朗已接受用人民币结算其向中国供应的一部分原油，这在一定程度上是美国为遏制伊朗核计划而实施的制裁的后果。德黑兰正用人民币支付从中国进口的商品和服务。人民币不能自由兑换。石油业高管指出，伊朗卖给中国的石油大部分由中国第二大石油企业——中石化(Sinopec)旗下的贸易公司联合石化(Unipec)和另一家名为珠海振戎的贸易公司经手。业界估计，两国之间的石油贸易额每年达200亿至300亿美元，不过其中一部分以易货贸易的形式进行。业内高管表示，珠海振戎通过向伊朗提供钻井等服务换取石油。迪拜一家银行的首席执行官表示：“全球金融危机加快了从西向东的转移。这些措施（如美国对伊朗的制裁）现在将推动人们在交易中使用人民币。”今年美国对珠海振戎实施制裁。美国实施的制裁迫使金融机构要么和伊朗做生意，要么和美国做生意。美国还带头制裁伊朗央行。美国的制裁以及外交行动导致日本、韩国、印度和中国减少从伊朗进口石油。这四个GJ合计占伊朗原油出口量的60%以上。昨日，美国国务卿希拉里?克林顿(Hillary Clinton)再次敦促印度减少从伊朗进口石油。印度已经在使用卢比结算从伊朗购买的石油。以人民币购买伊朗石油始于几个月前。上述石油业高管和银行家表示，最初，非易货交易部分通过人民币账户在北京结算，但迫于美国的压力，中国国内银行如中国银行(Bank of China)已中止与伊朗开展业务往来。上述人士表示，现在，大部分交易资金通过俄罗斯的银行转给德黑兰，这些银行从交易中抽取高额佣金。中石化、珠海振戎和伊朗央行均拒绝置评。何丽(Leslie Hook)北京、哈维尔?布拉斯(Monavar Khalaj)德黑兰、詹姆斯?丰塔内拉-可汗(James Fontanella-Khan)德里补充报道译者/倪卫国

《Iran accepts renminbi for oil as China negotiates US sanctions》永久阅读地址: http://91kudian.com/yingyu/190/