Saudi Arabia is likely to export more crude over the next few months due to increasing demand from Asian countries, according to the Kingdom’s Oil Ministry
KSA oil minister Ali Al-Naimi said, “It is thanks to Asian demand and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) energy supplies that our region’s combined GDP is at an historic high and that economic growth remains strong.
“For decades, GCC energy supplies helped support economic growth in the US and across Europe... We have done the same in Asia, supplying energy to help fuel its increasing growth and prosperity.”
State-run Saudi Aramco had kept oil output steady at around 9.05mn to 9.15mn bpd in January and February this year, but sources said exports could rise in Q2 2013.
China imported 1.08mn bpd of crude from Saudi Arabia in 2012, up 7.24 per cent from 2011, and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) expects the country’s total net imports to rise again in 2013.
Saudi Arabia government data revealed that Asia collectively bought more than three times as much crude in 2011 as buyers in North America, and five times more than those in Europe.
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