Saudi Arabia told OPEC that August crude production fell to 6.238 million barrels a day, the lowest official print since 1990, according to Bloomberg and regional rewrites of the secretariat report. Output dropped about 1.9 million barrels a day from July’s reported 8.135 million and slipped below April’s wartime nadir of 6.316 million barrels a day.
Kpler tracked Saudi crude exports near 3.2 million barrels a day, about a 13-year low, Al-Monitor reported. Riyadh’s supply-to-market figure, including stock draws, was 7.122 million barrels a day in August versus 7.417 million in July, Arabian Post said. An OPEC secondary-source estimate near 7.276 million sits well above the official 6.238 print; keep the two readings distinct.
The drop reflects shipping and war-route squeeze through Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb rather than a classic OPEC+ quota cut. Geopolitics overtook policy on the export path.
Sources:Bloomberg; Al-Monitor; Arabian Post; Kpler via Al-Monitor.
