UPDATE 1-China buys less W.African crude as stocks build

* Asia buys 46 W.African crude cargoes for Oct vs 52 in Sept

* Chinese crude oil inventories hit record high

* China buys 28 W.African cargoes for Oct vs 32 for Sept

(Adds details, quotes, table)

By Joe Brock

LONDON, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Asian buying of West African
crude oil will slip off a two-year high in October due to an
easing of Chinese and Indian demand, a Reuters survey showed on
Wednesday.

Demand edged lower as Chinese crude inventories hit record
highs and some Indian buyers chose to pick up oil from other
regions but Asian buying remained above the 2009 average.

****On a daily basis, Asian consumption of West African oil
is likely to average around 1.41 million barrels per day in
October, down from 1.65 million barrels per day (bpd) in
September and the lowest volume since July.

Oil industry sources say Chinese companies have bought 28
cargoes of West African oil for October loading, down from 32 in
September. These were mostly medium, heavy Angolan grades along
with some Nigerian and Equitorial Guinean crude cargoes.

China's crude oil stocks climbed for a second month in a row
in August versus July, to stand at a new record high, an
industry newsletter reported on Wednesday, as hefty crude
imports continued to outpace refinery throughput. [ID:nPEK75903]

Crude stocks, including both government and commercial
reserves, hit 39 million tonnes or 284.7 million barrels at the
end of August, up 2.2 million barrels from July, China OGP, a
newsletter run by the official Xinhua News Agency, said.

"Chinese buying is down a bit and stocks are building but
imports remain historically high and bulging inventories don't
seem to stop China buying," one physical West African crude oil
trader said on Wednesday.

On a global basis, Chinese oil demand is expected to grow
this year and next at a faster pace than previously expected,
the International Energy Agency (IEA) said earlier this month,
revising up its forecast. [ID:nLA134890]

CHINESE DEMAND TO GROW

Chinese oil demand is now expected to rise by as much as 4.6
percent to 8.3 million bpd in 2009, and by 4.0 percent to 8.6
million bpd in 2010, the IEA said.

Chinese demand for West African oil rose steadily this year
as its economy began to recover after a period of slower growth,
while cheap shipping costs and low U.S. demand made West African
crude attractive.

Indian buyers took 14 cargoes from West Africa in October,
down from 18 cargoes in September, while Taiwan's CPC Corp
bought four cargoes, trade sources said.

Although sweet West African crude oil grades remain popular
with Indian companies, they also seek alternatives if the
economics are favourable.

India's state-run companies, Indian Oil Corp and Bharat
Petroleum Corp have purchased Yemeni Masila and Saharan Blend
cargoes for October lifting as well as West African shipments.

West African crude oil cargoes sailing to Asia

OCT SEP AUG
COUNTRY CARGOES 'OOO BPD CARGOES '000 BPD CARGOES '000 BPD
CHINA 28 858 32 1,013 29 889
INDIA 14 429 18 570 19 582
INDONESIA 0 0 2 63 2 61
TAIWAN 4 0 0 0 2 61
KOREA 0 0 0 0 1 31
OTHERS 0 0 0 0 0 0

TOTAL 46 1.41 MLN 52 1.65 MLN 53 1.62 MLN
(Reporting by Joe Brock; editing by James Jukwey)