Saudi Arabia Shouldered OPEC’s Burden in December as Exports Cut
- Tanker tracking shows largest Middle East cut by Saudi Arabia
- Crude prices rose 2% Wednesday on U.S. stockpile reported drop
Source: Saudi Aramco
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If the comings and goings of oil tankers from the Persian Gulf are any guide, then OPEC’s Middle East powerhouses did their bit to curb a global crude glut last month. Saudi Arabia shouldered the burden.
The region’s six OPEC members shipped less than 18 million barrels a day of crude in December, the lowest combined outflow since August, according to vessel-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Saudi Arabia made by far the biggest contribution, reducing daily shipments by more than half a million barrels from the previous month. Its observed deliveries to China plunged to the lowest level of the year.