Bloomberg estimates that oil supplies from the Middle East to Europe could rise to 2.2 million barrels per day. This is 90% more than in January 2022.
According to vessel-tracking data, Europe imported more than 1 million barrels per day from the Middle East in July via the SuMed pipeline, which passes through Egypt. The volume of oil has doubled from a year ago. Notably, the SuMed pipeline transports oil from Saudi Arabia.
Iraq has also increased its oil supplies along with other Middle Eastern countries. The country transports its crude through the Suez Canal. Iraqi oil supply averages 1.2 million barrels per day.
According to Bloomberg, in the middle of July, Europe surpassed Asia to become the top consumer of American oil for the first time in six years. From January to May 2022, Europe took an average of 213.1 million barrels of crude, while Asia received 191.1 million barrels. The last time Asia fell behind Europe was in 2016 when the US lifted its crude export ban.
In early July, the Saudi government said it planned to increase production from 10 million barrels per day to 13 million barrels per day at the request of US President Joe Bide. The White House pointed out ample opportunities for Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Kuwait to ramp up oil production.