OPEC crude oil production fell in August, reversing a two-month recovery as group leader Saudi Arabia slashed output following security threats to both its primary and backup export routes, a Bloomberg survey showed on Tuesday.
Total output from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries dropped by 900,000 barrels per day last month to average 19.91 million b/d. The decline was driven by Saudi Arabia, where production fell by over 1 million b/d, partially offset by modest gains in Iraq and Venezuela.
Saudi Arabia's crude production dropped by 1.12 million b/d in August to 6.98 million b/d, its lowest level since May. The Gulf state's observed crude exports plunged by a third to 3.03 million b/d.
Saudi Arabia faces mounting logistical bottlenecks as escalating attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz disrupt flows from the Persian Gulf.
Concurrently, threats from Yemen's Houthi movement have impeded shipments through the Red Sea corridor, which the Gulf state had relied upon as an alternative export route.
OPEC did not immediately reply to' request for comment.
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