Bloomberg reports, citing people with knowledge on the matter
The report says that China is considering the possibility of bolstering the country's strategic stockpiles by buying more crude now considering the cheap price.
The sources say that top planning officials are consulting with government agencies on the matter and Beijing is yet to decide on whether to proceed.
That's some good news for oil prices - for now at least - if China is looking to step up purchases amid the supply glut but this will come back to bite at the market in the long-term.
For now, the drop on Monday - biggest since 1991 - is still resonating so the news here may alleviate pressure on oil prices in the short-term.
However, I would argue that it balances out in the bigger picture. In September last year, China said that they had oil reserves for about 80 days of use and given the slowdown currently, it would be hard to imagine a significant need to boost that dramatically.
