Middle East oil flows recover to nearly 80% of pre-war levels: WSJ

DUBAI, Sept 29: Oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and alternative routes have recovered to nearly 80% of pre-war regional levels, as Middle Eastern crude exports rebound despite the ongoing conflict, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Crude exports from major Middle Eastern producers, including Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the UAE, have risen to nearly 13 million barrels per day in September, according to ship-tracking data cited by the WSJ. That is the highest level since February, when regional exports were close to 19 million barrels per day.

The recovery has reduced Iran’s ability to use disruption of oil flows through Hormuz as leverage in negotiations with the United States, the newspaper reported, as US naval operations and Gulf producers’ alternative routes have enabled more tankers to move through or around the waterway. Saudi Arabia has also begun restoring crude shipments through its damaged East-West pipeline and loading tankers in the Red Sea, although volumes remain below normal levels.