Crude output from the world’s top three producers, Russia, the United States and Saudi Arabia now jointly account for a third of global oil supplies.
Data from Refinitiv Eikon showed that the three countries produced 33 million barrels of oil a day for the first time in September, an increase of 10million bpd since the start of the decade.
From all indications, they appear not slowing down as oil prices take a dip on Tuesday. Saudi Arabia and Russia have signalled they would pump more oil to fill Iranian vacuum when Trump sanctions take effect from 4 November.
Brent oil prices dipped on Tuesday, weighed down by ongoing weakness in global stock markets and by signs of rising global supply despite looming sanctions on Iran’s crude exports.
Front-month Brent crude oil futures were at $77.05 a barrel at 0428 GMT, down 29 cents, or 0.4 percent, from their last close.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were firmer, however, at $67.16 a barrel, up 12 from their last settlement.
Oil has been caught up in broad financial market slumps this month, with stocks falling again on Monday after reports Washington was planning an additional $257 billion worth of tariffs on Chinese goods if upcoming talks between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping fail to end a trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
High oil prices are hurting consumers and could dent demand, the executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Tuesday.
“There are two downward pressures on global oil demand growth. One is high oil prices, and in many countries they’re directly related to consumer prices. The second one is global economic growth momentum slowing down,” said IEA chief Fatih Birol.
Oil was also being weighed down by signs of rising supply from top producers.
“A Saudi pledge to produce as much oil as possible, and the stock market rout, have sharply reduced concerns about the Nov. 4 implementation of U.S. sanctions against Iran,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.
Russia has also indicated that it will provide enough oil to meet demand once U.S. sanctions hit Iran from next week.
Hedge fund managers continued to liquidate former bullish positions in oil last week, with signs of short-selling appearing for the first time in over a year.
Despite that, Hansen said “given the yet unknown impact on Iran’s ability to produce and export (amid sanctions) … we could see some speculative buying emerge ahead of Nov. 4.”
Iran’s seaborne crude exports, by contrast, have fallen from a 2018-peak of just over 2.5 million bpd in May to around 1.5 million bpd in September and October, Eikon data showed.
