China sees long lines at the gas pump as Mideast turmoil hits

Panicked drivers lined up in long queues outside gas stations across China on Monday after receiving an alert from Chinese oil giant Sinopec about a pending price hike.

The state refiner issued a notice Sunday that the price of gas will be set higher by a “meaningful” amount starting March 24.

“As soon as I got the notice, I ran out to fill my tank,” Zhou Ping, a Beijing resident, said while waiting in her car at a gas station downtown.

Prices were tipped to go up to 2,205 yuan per metric ton — the equivalent of about $1 per gallon.

Public panic prompted the country’s state planner, the National Development and Reform Commission, to cut the hike to 1,160 yuan per metric ton. For the average Chinese driver, the increase is still a significant expense. Gas in China currently costs about $4.50 per gallon.

Zhang Jiarong calculates the price hike will cost him roughly $300 more a month. “This is going to have a huge impact on my life,” he told CNBC.

China controls prices at the pump. But earlier this month authorities raised the ceiling by the biggest amount in four years because of surging oil prices triggered by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Chinese drivers like Kitty Zhang expressed frustration with President Donald Trump, as Washington and Beijing continue to signal a delayed summit with President Xi Jinping in China will take place later this year.

“If Trump didn’t start a war and Israel didn’t start a war, I wouldn’t be sitting here all day waiting for my gas, right?” she said.