Survey: OPEC oil production in March sees the largest decline in decades

ME News Update: On April 7 (UTC+8), due to the Middle East conflict suppressing exports from major member countries, OPEC’s crude oil production in March fell by the largest amount in at least forty years. The survey shows that OPEC’s daily output plunged by 7.56 million barrels (about 25%), to 22 million barrels. Data compiled by institutions since 1989 indicates that the March production drop registered the largest month-on-month decline. This scale of decrease (measured in barrels) also exceeded the 1973 Arab oil embargo. According to Daniel Yergin’s The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power, from October to December of that year, the market saw an overall loss of 5 million barrels per day, though that shock occurred in a much smaller global market. The survey shows that among OPEC member countries, Iraq—most dependent on the Strait of Hormuz—saw the largest output decline, with daily output down by 2.76 million barrels to 1.63 million barrels. Saudi Arabia and the UAE suffered the second-largest losses, benefiting from their ability to partially divert exports via alternative oil pipelines. Saudi Arabia’s daily output fell by 2.07 million barrels to 8.36 million barrels, while the UAE’s daily output fell by 1.44 million barrels to 2.16 million barrels. Although Saudi Arabia can export via the Red Sea, oil-tanker tracking shows that Saudi exports in March fell by about 50%. (Golden Ten) (Source: ODaily)