China: Major Oil Industry Merger Makes Way for More Competition

The oil refining sector in China is about to get more competitive. On Sept. 1, Xinhua reported that the Shandong provincial government had approved a request to create a conglomerate out of the major independent refineries in the province, which are known colloquially as "teapots." The conglomerate will be led by Dongming Petrochemical and is expected to be up and running within a year, with an initial registered capital of 90 billion yuan ($13.7 billion)....