China continues to see strong growth in LNG imports, despite a change in the country’s anti-air pollution campaign, new figures show.

Last year, China’s imports of LNG soared 40.4% year-on-year to a record 53.8mt, according to figures from the General Administration of Customs.

China retained its position as the world’s second largest importer of the commodity after Japan, having overtaken South Korea in 2017.