China is a clear winner from Trump’s war in Middle East, report concludes

China emerges as the clearest regional beneficiary from the Strait of Hormuz crisis, according to an Asia Group thinktank report, because its large oil stockpiles and faster renewable buildout have cushioned it from the energy shock hitting Asia. The report says China’s crude imports rose from 11.1m b/d to 11.6m b/d in 2025, with more than 80% of the increase diverted into stocks, leaving it with about 104 days of import cover as of January. The report highlights that roughly 80% of the oil and nearly 90% of LNG transiting Hormuz goes to Asian markets, leaving Japan, South Korea and parts of southeast Asia more exposed to higher energy costs and supply disruption. China’s renewable capacity has also become a strategic buffer: it added 315GW of new solar last year and 277GW the year before, with Beijing targeting half of energy supply from non-fossil sources by 2030. For metals, the read-through is indirect but constructive for safe-haven demand if the Middle East crisis keeps driving geopolitical risk, inflation fears and higher energy prices. The more immediate market implication is via macro: sustained oil strength and wider risk premium could support gold on haven flows, but the article itself is not a direct precious-metals flow or pricing piece.