Asia's July Iran oil imports rise 61pc

Imports of Iranian oil by four major buyers in Asia in July jumped 61.1 percent from a year earlier, marking the biggest percentage gain since April 2014, reflecting Tehran's aggressive moves to recoup market share, lost under international sanctions.

Iran is regaining market share at a faster pace than analysts had projected since sanctions were lifted in January, and Iran's senior government official said it sees its oil production at 4 million barrels per day by year-end.

The four countries, South Korea, Japan, China and India, imported 1.64 million barrels per day (bpd) in July, government and ship-tracking data showed.

Japan's trade ministry on Wednesday released official data showing its imports jumped 61.8 percent from a year earlier to 256,651 bpd last month.

Imports by South Korea jumped more than fourfold last month, while India's imports more than doubled from a year ago.