Saudi crude exports drop to eight-month low in February

Saudi Arabia's crude oil exports fell to their lowest in eight months in February, the Joint Organisations Data Initiative (JODI) said on Monday, as the world's biggest oil exporter voluntarily capped output to support oil prices.

Crude exports fell to 5.625 million barrels per day (bpd), their lowest since June 2020 in February, from 6.582 million bpd in the prior month.

Exports had risen for a seventh straight month, to their highest since April 2020, in January.

Crude output for February also dropped to its lowest since June last year at 8.147 million bpd, from 9.103 million bpd in January.

Saudi Arabia, the de facto leader of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies, voluntarily cut output by 1 million bpd in February, March and April as part of a deal with OPEC+ producers after new virus variants cast doubts over fuel demand.

Total crude and oil products exports fell to 6.86 million bpd in February from 7.75 million bpd a month earlier.

The country's domestic refinery crude throughput fell to 2.281 million bpd, while crude stocks fell to 134.575 million barrels in February.

Exports of oil products rose to 1.23 million bpd in February and demand for oil products edged higher to 1.885 million bpd in the same period.

Monthly export figures are provided by Riyadh and other OPEC members to JODI, which publishes them on its website.