China’s financial regulator advised the country’s largest banks to temporarily suspend new loans to several refineries sanctioned by the United States over their ties to Iranian oil, Reuters reported, citing Bloomberg News.
According to the report, regulators verbally instructed banks to avoid issuing new yuan-denominated loans to five refiners, including Hengli Petrochemical, while reviewing existing business relationships. The move reportedly came before Beijing publicly urged Chinese firms to disregard US sanctions targeting Iranian oil trade.