TOKYO, April 20 (Reuters) - - The volume of Japan's customs-cleared crude oil imports fell 6.6 percent in March from the same month a year earlier, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday.
Economic activity in Japan last month was hurt by a magnitude 9.0 quake and tsunami on March 11 that devastated the northeast coast, damaging roads, ports and other infrastructure and disrupting supply chains.
But utilities had to use more fossil fuels than usual after the massive quake and tsunami forced the indefinite shutdown of four nuclear plants. [ID:nL3E7FF077]
Japan, the world's third-biggest oil consumer, imported 17.776 million kilolitres (3.61 million barrels per day) of crude oil last month, preliminary data showed.
In February, Japan's crude oil imports were 18.872 million kl, up 5.6 percent from a year ago.
Japan's imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) totalled 6.674 million tonnes last month, down 0.6 percent from a year earlier. Imports of thermal coal for power generation rose 18.5 percent in March to 8.815 million tonnes, the data showed. (Reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Edmund Klamann)