Saudi Arabia has retaken the position of the world’s top oil producer from the US, according to the International Energy Agency.
“Saudi Arabia’s elevated oil production has allowed it to overtake the US and become the world’s largest oil producer,” the Paris-based IEA said in its monthly report on Tuesday.
While Saudi Arabia has added 400,000 barrels a day of output from low-cost fields since May, about 460,000 barrels a day of “high-cost” production has been shut down in the US.
The US output in August stood at 12.2 million barrels a day, including natural gas liquids, according to the IEA. The drop in the US production came as the number of rigs drilling for oil and gas fell to a record low of 404 on May 20, according to data from Baker Hughes Inc. That number has since recovered to 508 as of September 9.
Saudi Arabian crude supply climbed to 10.65 million barrels a day in July, before easing to 10.6 million in August.
WTI fell 2.6% to $45.09 a barrel as of 10:37 am London time, after the IEA said the surplus in global oil markets will last for longer than previously thought, Bloomberg reports.
