Crude oil exports from Saudi Arabia fell for a second straight month in April to a record low, according to Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI) data released on Monday, as the Iran war disrupted shipments from the Gulf region.
Exports fell to about 3.990mn barrels per day in April from 4.974mn bpd in March.
The JODI data for Saudi Arabia's crude oil exports and output extends back to 2002, the earliest period for which data is available.
The country's crude oil production stood at 6.316mn bpd in April, the lowest level on record, compared with 6.967mn bpd in March.
Monthly export figures are provided by Riyadh and other members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) to the JODI, which publishes them on its website.
"The conflict in the Middle East and restricted flows via the Strait of Hormuz kept weighing on production and exports," said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
"Additionally, the strike on the pumping station of (Saudi Arabia's) East-West pipeline temporarily disrupted flows via the pipeline bypassing the Strait, and is likely the reason for lower exports in April versus March," he added.
In the latest on the geopolitical front, the US and Iran made "encouraging progress" at the first round of talks aimed at reaching a final peace deal, mediators said, although tension persisted over Lebanon and the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian attacks on Gulf states in response to US-Israeli strikes that began in late February damaged major energy facilities and disrupted shipping through the strait, which normally carries about 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas flows.
The International Energy Agency estimated that the war blocked more than 14mn bpd of Middle East oil output.
Meanwhile, the US has become the world's largest oil exporter, upending a decades-old order long dominated by Saudi Arabia and Russia, a shift that tightens US companies' grip on energy markets as the war reshapes global energy trade.
Saudi Arabia's refinery crude throughput in April fell by 0.055mn bpd to 2.211mn bpd from March's 2.266mn bpd, the JODI data showed. Direct crude burning increased by 210,000 bpd to 540,000 bpd.
Separately, Russia's seaborne exports of fuel oil and vacuum gasoil (VGO) fell by about 6% month-on-month to 3.2mn metric tons in May, as Ukrainian drone strikes on infrastructure curtailed output and shipments, data from traders and LSEG showed.
Saudi Arabia remained a key destination for fuel oil and VGO as high summer temperatures boosted air-conditioning demand, but shipments there were down 17% from April to 1.23mn tons, Reuters calculations based on the data showed. Increased export volumes in recent months were driven by disruptions linked to the Iran war, which reshaped flows and lifted demand for crude oil, as well as a temporary waiver on US sanctions on Russian oil products, traders said.
Saudi Arabia is expected to burn more imported fuel oil for power generation this summer due to a loss of natural gas supply from oilfields that have been shut after the Iran war curbed its oil exports, analysts said.
Since the European Union's full embargo on Russian oil products took effect in February 2023, the Middle East and Asia have become the main outlets for Russia's fuel oil and VGO.
Russian fuel exports to Singapore and Malaysia, major bunkering and storage hubs, fell 39% month on month in May to around 0.4mn tons, LSEG data showed.
Meanwhile, nearly 140,000 tons of VGO and fuel oil loaded at Russian ports last month were destined for transfers near Port Said in Egypt, with the final destination unclear.
Exports to India, once among Russia's largest fuel oil markets, fell 28% to around 120,000 tons, shipping data showed.
All shipping data cited is based on cargo departure dates.
