Crude oil imports fell 1.7 percent to 124.48 million barrels in January for the first year-on-year decline in three months, the Natural Resources and Energy Agency said Monday.
Oil shipments from the Middle East accounted for 87.1 percent of total imports, down 1.5 points, the agency at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a preliminary report.
Saudi Arabia remained Japan's biggest oil supplier, exporting 34.28 million barrels, down 8.3 percent. The United Arab Emirates was second with 28.62 million barrels, up 19.9 percent, followed by Qatar, which supplied 14.53 million barrels, down 6.2 percent.
Output of petroleum products grew 0.1 percent to 18.08 million kiloliters, rising for the first time in four months. One kl equals 6.29 barrels.
Sales of petroleum products in Japan were down 1.7 percent to 18.05 million kl.