The unusual move - the figures show China sold no crude oil at all to its neighbor in September - reduced cumulative sales for the year by about 7 percent over the same period in 2005. China's oil exports to Pyongyang had been averaging about 50,000 metric tons a month this year.
In September, China exported 125,185 tons of crude for a reported value of $62 million. All of that was exported to the United States, with North Korea receiving nothing.