China Scooped Up Record Volumes of Russian Oil In March

China scooped up record volumes of crude oil imports from Russia in March, adding 790,000 barrels per day to its stockpiles, up from 570,000 bpd in January and February, Reuters’ Clyde Russell reported on Thursday, citing official Chinese import data.  Beijing’s efforts to boost its strategic stockpiles is simultaneously skewing the country’s oil demand picture, with record imports of Russian oil contributing to a false picture of the country’s overall demand, Russell notes.  First-quarter numbers for the year…