Fred Yao's Public Library

Restocking by China’s state commodity reserve bureau played a large part in the record import volumes, as did easy credit from state banks, which encouraged some firms to buy commodities speculatively, according to the report.

Some producers took advantage of arbitrage opportunities presented by plummeting global commodity and shipping prices to replace domestic production with imported supply, illustrated by the steep drop in energy use in the first half of the year as energy-intensive miners and smelters shut down operations in favour of cheaper imports. Imports of unwrought copper and aluminium in the first half of the year were more than six times the level seen in 2006, when GDP growth was averaging 11 per cent, while monthly imports of crude oil and iron ore reached their highest ever level in July.