Saudi Arabia's crude oil production fell to its lowest level since 1990 in August, as the US-Iran conflict threatens key maritime chokepoints for oil exports. The kingdom is drawing down stored inventories to keep supply flowing to customers even as output and exports both decline.
Saudi Arabia's crude oil production dropped to 6.238 million barrels per day in August, a level the kingdom hasn't touched since 1990. That's a decline of 1.9 million bpd, reported directly to OPEC, and it marks the second time this year that Riyadh has set a multi-decade production low.
What's driving the decline
The primary culprit is the ongoing US-Iran conflict, which has turned two of the most critical maritime chokepoints on the planet into active threat zones. The Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply typically flows, and the Bab el-Mandeb strait at the southern entrance to the Red Sea have both seen escalating dangers from Iranian forces and Houthi militants operating out of Yemen.
The August figure didn't arrive without warning. Back in April 2026, Saudi production had already fallen to 6.316 million bpd, a drop of 651,000 bpd from March. That was itself a 36-year low at the time.
Saudi crude exports tell a similar story. Shipments fell to approximately 3.2 million bpd in August, the lowest level in over a decade. For context, Saudi Arabia was exporting well above 7 million bpd as recently as a few years ago.
The inventory gamble
One notable detail in the OPEC data: Saudi Arabia's reported market supply in August was 7.122 million bpd, nearly 900,000 bpd higher than its actual production figure. The gap means the kingdom is drawing down stored crude inventories to keep some semblance of normal supply flowing to its customers.
Source: Crypto Briefing
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