Saudi Aramco has raised its stake in Japanese oil refiner Showa Shell Sekiyu KK, part of a move to increase its market share in the world's second-biggest oil importing country.

Showa Shell said that Aramco has bought an additional five per cent from Royal Dutch/Shell Group, taking its holding to 14.96 per cent.
The extra stake is part of a deal last year under which Aramco bought an initial 9.96 per cent of Showa Shell with an option for the further five per cent.
Financial terms were not disclosed, but the five per cent stake would be worth 21.3 billion yen ($194.8 million). After the transaction, Royal Dutch/Shell's holding in Showa Shell will drop to 35.04 per cent.
With the initial deal last year, Saudi Arabia replaced the UAE as Japan's top crude oil supplier. Aramco nearly doubled its supply to Showa Shell to about 300,000 barrels per day (bpd).
Saudi Arabia supplies about the same volume of crude to Japan's biggest refiner, Nippon Oil Corp, which accounts for about a quarter of Japan's refining capacity of 4.76 million bpd.
In April, Saudi Arabia supplied Japan with about 1.09 million bpd of crude oil, or about 28 per cent of Japan's total crude oil imports of 3.84 million bpd, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
Japan is the world's second-biggest oil importer and the third biggest consumer after the US and China.
The arrangement with Aramco provides security of supply for the bulk of Showa Shell's refining needs. Increasing crude oil purchases from Saudi Arabia also helps Showa Shell to cut shipping costs.