US oil exports surged to a record last week as Asian and European buyers rushed to replace Middle Eastern crude lost because of disruption caused by the Iran war.
US crude shipments jumped to 5.2mn barrels per day, up by just over 1mn barrels per day on the previous week, according to US government data published on Wednesday. The US also exported about 7.5mn barrels of refined products, including gasoline and fuel oils, as overseas customers hunted for alternative suppliers amid worsening global shortages.
The surge in US exports and a big fall in crude imports into the US caused inventories to fall at a time when many analysts had expected an increase. The drop caused US oil prices to reverse earlier losses on Wednesday morning, trading up about 1 per cent at $92.12.