By: OrePulse

September crude exports from the Middle East's major producers climbed to 12.8 million barrels a day, the highest level since fighting involving Iran, Israel and the United States began in February, according to ship-tracking data from Kpler released Monday.

Saudi Arabia, the region's largest exporter, shipped an average of about 5.4 million barrels per day during the month, up sharply from 2.446 million barrels per day in August, the data showed. The United Arab Emirates also increased shipments and contributed to the broader regional rebound, though the figures did not include a comparable volume for the UAE alone.

Shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, the main export route for crude produced around the Gulf, rose to about 7.4 million barrels per day in September. Loadings from Saudi Arabia's Ras Tanura terminal increased to 3.6 million barrels per day, up from 929,000 barrels per day in August. However, that remained well below the 6.411 million barrels per day the terminal handled in February, before the conflict began.

Even with September's increase, combined output from the seven producers tracked in the data — Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and Iran — remained roughly 6 million barrels per day below the 18.8 million barrels per day these producers exported in February, the last full month before the conflict disrupted regional shipping patterns.

Before the conflict began, the Strait of Hormuz typically carried around 125 large commercial vessels a day, according to the data, accounting for roughly one-fifth of the world's daily supply of crude oil and liquefied natural gas.

The data did not attribute September's rebound to any single factor, and no producer government stated the export figures as of Monday.