China’s blocking order leaves shipping, oil and banking compliance teams navigating ‘Odyssean dilemma’
- Beijing has barred companies from complying with fresh US sanctions on five Chinese refiners over alleged oil trade with Iran, which marks the first concrete action since the introduction of such blocking rules in 2021
- Lawyers say firms with China exposure must shift from one-sided US compliance to a ‘dual-track’ model that also weighs Chinese countermeasures, as the change forces a rethink of sanctions clauses and group-wide instructions
- But the order’s bite beyond China’s borders looks uncertain, with most market players still fearing US sanctions far more and enforcement against foreign counterparties especially hard in oil trade
With the Middle East crisis tightening the sanctions noose on Iran’s oil buyers, China fires back by activating its own blocking rules — forcing a compliance rethink, although enforcement beyond its borders remains doubtful
