Saudi Arabia, Iraq, UAE, and Kuwait cut oil production

According to Ukrinform, Bloomberg reported this.

“Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait have lowered their collective output by as much as 6.7 million barrels a day,” sources familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named, reported this.

Production cuts occur across the Persian Gulf, even though Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are increasing exports through alternative routes bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.

At the same time, Saudi Arabia's Red Sea shipments reached a record high this week. However, according to a person familiar with the matter, storage facilities are still filling up across the region, and some producers are preemptively cutting production to delay the moment when they will be forced to shut down completely.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that the US and Israel are making significant progress in the war against Iran and could end the conflict “very soon,” which would cause oil prices to fall. But with the war now in its 11th day, there is urgent pressure to restore the waterway to normal so exports from the Persian Gulf can resume.

“While we have faced disruptions in the past, this one by far is the biggest crisis the region’s oil and gas industry has faced,” Amin Nasser, the chief executive officer of Saudi Aramco, said.

In addition to oil production, the war in Iran has led to the closure of oil refineries, the shutdown of the world's largest liquefied natural gas plant in Qatar, and a sharp rise in global fuel prices and oil transportation costs.

As reported by Ukrinform, Trump said the US is temporarily lifting some oil-related sanctions to stabilize energy prices.

On February 28, the US and Israel launched joint strikes on regime targets in Iran. Iran then attacked US bases in Kuwait, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, and Jordan.

Illustrative photo: Alex Waldbrand on Unsplash