Mexico Sells 1M Barrels of Light Crude to Japan

(Reuters) - Mexico's state-run oil giant Pemex said on Tuesday it is selling crude to Japan for the first time in 11 years, opening another Asian market as an export destination as the company seeks to diversify away from the United States.

Pemex will export 1 million barrels of its Isthmus light crude to Japan, the company said in a post on its Twitter page.

A Pemex spokesman told Reuters the company hopes to make Japan a regular customer, but gave no further details.

Mexico currently exports about 800,000 barrels per day, or nearly 70 percent of its total crude shipments, to the United States. Over the past few years the country has inked deals to send increasing amounts of crude to China and India.

While Mexico is the third-biggest crude supplier to the United States, it imports about half of its gasoline from its northern neighbor due to a lack of refining capacity at home.