Saudi Arabia exported considerably more crude oil in June

The crude oil imports climbed by 465,000 barrels per day, which in itself was already enough to drive stocks up by 3.2 million barrels. Imports exceeded 8 million barrels per day for the first time since early April and only for the second time this year. 

The renewed decrease in US crude oil output by 47,000 barrels per day - the fifth fall in the past six weeks - was not nearly sufficient to offset this. Even before the inventory data were published, it was announced yesterday that Saudi Arabia had stepped up its oil exports in June by a significant 430,000 to 7.365 million barrels per day, notes Commerzbank.

Although the data from JODI relate to the period before the sharp price fall that began in early July, they nonetheless indicate that the largest OPEC producer is continuing to follow its strategy of defending its market shares. In other words, oil prices are unlikely to have bottomed out yet.