China overtakes US as number one energy user

China overtook the United States to become the world's biggest consumer of energy last year, according to the International Energy Agency.

China overhauled the US much quicker than had been anticipated because the latter has made huge strides in becoming more energy efficient. However, on a per capita basis, Americans still use far more energy than either Chinese or Europeans.

China has also not suffered the same setback in growth caused by the financial crisis.

IEA chief economist Fatih Birol said: "In the 2000s, the US consumed twice as much energy as China, now China consumes more than the US. On the one hand, the US has come to a certain saturation of energy use, but there have also been lots of efforts, especially since 2005, to use energy more efficiently."

He pointed out that the US had improved its energy efficiency by 2.5 per cent annually in the past decade, while China only managed a 1.7 per cent annual improvement.

One of the consequences of China's new-found primacy in the energy markets is that it will come to determine how energy is used beyond its borders - from the types of cars manufactured to the kinds of power plants built.

Read a full report at the Financial Times (registration required). ·