Middle East Oil Flows Near Prewar Levels Defy Hormuz Attacks
Crude and condensate flows from the Persian Gulf reached 24.6 million barrels a day in the week to Oct. 18, according to Kpler, while Vortexa put the same seven-day period at 18 million barrels a day. Kpler estimates October-to-date Middle East flows at 16.7 million barrels a day and Vortexa at 15.4 million, both below the at least 18.5 million barrels a day the two firms estimate for before the conflict. UK Maritime Trade Operations reported 32 attacks on ships around the Arabian peninsula so far this month, compared with 16 in the whole of September.
Why it matters: The figures bear on energy security, indicating that Gulf export volumes have held near prewar levels even as attacks on merchant shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz have multiplied.