Yemisi Izuora
Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports rose by 80,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 5.75 million bpd in September.
This is the highest in three months, the latest data from the Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI) indicated on Monday.
The September crude exports were the highest since June, likely due to the lower direct crude burning for power generation as the hottest months in the Kingdom ended.
Direct crude burning slumped by 296,000 bpd from August to stand at about 518,000 bpd in September, according to the JODI data which compiles self-reported figures from individual countries.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s top crude oil exporter, saw its oil production fall slightly by 17,000 bpd to 8.98 million bpd in September, while refinery runs hit a four-month high of 2.756 million bpd, up by 35,000 bpd from August, per the JODI data.
The Saudi crude oil production was in line with the Kingdom’s pledge from last summer to keep output at “around 9 million bpd” with the OPEC+ production cuts and the voluntary 1-million-bpd reduction.
Saudi Arabia and its OPEC+ partners have delayed their planned production increase to January 2025 from December 2024. The group currently intends to start adding supply to the market in January next year, initially at a pace of 180,000 bpd for the first month.
However, for a fourth consecutive month, OPEC last week slashed its estimate of global oil demand growth for both this year and next.
Saudi Arabia, for its part, is set to deliver lower crude volumes to China, the world’s top crude oil importer, in December.
Weak demand in China will lead to lower supply from the world’s top crude exporter, Saudi Arabia, to the world’s largest crude importer in December, trading sources told Reuters last week.
December will see a second consecutive month of lower Saudi deliveries to China, estimated at a total of 36.5 million barrels.
This would be down from 37.5 million barrels expected this month, and 46 million barrels in October, according to trade data compiled by Reuters.