Gulf crude oil and condensate exports surged to their highest level since February in the first half of July before tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz slowed sharply, according to Kpler.
Shipments from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Kuwait and Iran averaged 12m barrels per day, up about 16% from June. Vortexa put the combined volume at 13.06m barrels per day.
Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq drove the increase. Iraq recorded the largest month-on-month rise, while UAE shipments eased after reaching record levels in June. The rebound still left regional exports about 32% below February’s peak of 17.6m barrels per day.
Traffic then weakened. Four vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, compared with eight on Saturday, while Kpler recorded only three commodity tanker transits on one day earlier in the week, the lowest daily total since May. “We’re seeing a slowdown in activity, which means that countries will have to reduce output, which decreases the amount of crude that will be shipped,” Kpler analyst Johannes Rauball said.
The Joint Maritime Information Center maintained its “severe” threat assessment for the strait on 16 July, citing reduced commercial traffic, increased operator caution, attacks on ships and renewed restrictions affecting Iranian ports and coastal areas.
US Central Command disabled the Curaçao-flagged, unladen tanker M/T Belma on 15 July after the vessel ignored warnings while sailing towards Iran’s Kharg Island. Two other commercial ships complied with instructions and were redirected during the first 24 hours after enforcement resumed.
Saudi Arabia routed most of its exports through Yanbu on the Red Sea. Kpler estimated that 75% of the country’s 5.29m barrels per day of crude and condensate exports in July were shipped from the port.
Kpler is a commodity and maritime intelligence provider covering physical trade flows and vessel movements.
Vortexa is an energy and freight analytics company focused on seaborne oil and gas trades.