Saudi Arabia bolsters crude oil share in Asia at Russia’s expense

Market shift: The sun sets behind a crude oil pump jack on a drill pad in Texas, United States. The challenge for Middle East exporters is to keep their crudes competitive enough against other producers so as to maintain, or regain, market share. — Reuters

SAUDI Arabia clawed back market share of Asia’s crude oil imports in November, while Russia surrendered some of its barrels in what may be an early sign of a shift in market dynamics.

Asia’s imports from Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest crude exporter, rose to 5.83 million barrels per day (bpd) in November, up from 5.28 million bpd in October, according to data compiled by LSEG Oil Research.