❗️West Asian oil exports rebound to highest level since war on Iran began

Crude oil exports from major West Asian producers rose to 16.328 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, their highest level since the US-Israeli war on Iran began in late February, according to Kpler data released on Monday. The increase was driven by higher shipments from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

The recovery followed a rise in exports through the Strait of Hormuz, which were expected to reach around 9.719 million bpd this month. Saudi Arabia redirected some crude shipments from the Red Sea port of Yanbu after attacks damaged its East-West pipeline, preliminary data showed.

Exports from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and Iran have recovered but remained around 3.2 million bpd below February's 19.513 million bpd level, according to Kpler.

The figures include shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, including ship-to-ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman, exports from the UAE's Fujairah and Omani terminals outside the strait, and shipments through the Red Sea.

"Kpler ‌estimates Middle ⁠East crude exports at just under 80% of pre-conflict levels," the company said in a note on Monday.

Saudi Arabia, the region's largest exporter, was expected to ship around 5.4 million bpd in September, up from 2.446 million bpd in August, the data showed.

Shipments from Saudi Arabia's Ras Tanura port in the Gulf rose to approximately 3.25 million bpd in September, compared with 929,000 bpd in August, although they remained below the 6.411 million bpd recorded in February.

Kpler data showed that 19 very large crude carriers (VLCCs), each carrying about 2 million barrels of Saudi crude, passed through the Strait of Hormuz last week.