Japan purchased a record of more than 100,000 b/d of US crude in 2025 as refiners embraced light sweet US grades as optimal feedstocks to help reduce their reliance on sour crude supply, with the industry aiming to actively procure crude from the Americas, Africa and Asia-Oceania in 2026 for diversification despite rising sweet crude premiums.

Japan imported 103,784 b/d or 37.9 million barrels of light sweet WTI Midland and West Texas Light crudes from the US in 2025, almost double the 56,714 b/d purchased in 2024 and marking the highest annual shipment from North American suppliers, data from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry released Jan. 30 showed.

The robust US crude intake, on top of shipments from Africa, Latin America, Southeast Asia and Oceania, helped Japan reduce its reliance on Middle Eastern sour crude to 93.5% in 2025 from 95.4% in 2024, according to the latest METI data.

The Japanese refining industry is fully aware of the necessity to diversify crude supply sources as global geopolitical fault lines remain fluid and can quickly translate into supply disruptions, freight bottlenecks or price spikes, feedstock and logistics managers at two major Japanese refiners, including ENEOS, told Platts, part of S&P Global Energy, over Jan. 29-Feb. 3.

Against that backdrop, US crude has become an increasingly attractive alternative in Japan’s diversification mix, helped also by favorable economics in 2025, Japanese refinery feedstock managers and traders said.

For much of 2025, WTI Midland traded below key sour crude grades. Platts assessed the spread between WTI Midland and Murban crude on a CFR Asia basis at an average of minus 38 cents/b in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Diversification vs. economics

Looking ahead, rising global sweet crude premiums and the strength in the Brent crude complex may not significantly deter Japanese refiners’ efforts to keep feedstock portfolios diversified and mitigate risks, feedstock managers at three major refiners, including ENEOS, and traders at Mitsui told Platts Jan. 23-Feb. 3.

Platts assessed the Brent-Dubai crude exchange of futures for swaps spread — a key indicator of Brent’s premium or discount to the Middle Eastern benchmark — at $2.86/b Jan. 30, marking the highest premium since $3.58/b on June 23, 2025.

The EFS spread averaged $1.74/b so far in the first quarter, compared with the average of 35 cents/b in fourth-quarter 2025.

A stronger positive EFS makes various sweet crudes from the US, North Sea, the Mediterranean, Southeast Asia and Oceania — linked to the European benchmark — less economical than Dubai-linked Middle Eastern grades.

Furthermore, WTI Midland flipped to a premium over Murban crude on a CFR Asia basis early in 2026. The spread between the light sweet US grade and the light sour Abu Dhabi grade averaged $1.87/b to date as of Feb. 2, Platts data showed.

Still, keeping crude supply sources diversified is important for the Japanese refining industry and Asia’s fourth largest crude buyer could target 5%-8% proportion from the Americas, Africa and Asia-Oceania for the total annual 2026 crude import basket, according to a Platts survey of eight feedstock managers, crude traders and analysts at four major refiners and one integrated trading company, including ENEOS and Taiyo Oil.

The Platts survey was conducted over Jan. 22-Feb. 2. While most participants declined to be named, they told Platts they could be identified as feedstock managers and traders based in Tokyo, Osaka and Singapore.

Given WTI Midland’s superior quality and higher middle distillate yields, the light sweet US grade remains a highly attractive component of Asia’s feedstock blending pool, crude slate strategists, feedstock inventory managers and traders at leading Asian refiners importing US crude in South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Thailand, including PTT and ENEOS, told Platts over Jan. 22-Feb. 3.

Source: Platts