US crude exports fall from record high

US crude exports averaged 2.69mn b/d in July, falling from a record high in the previous month, according to the latest US monthly trade data.

The July total was down by about 15pc from 3.16mn b/d in June, according to the latest figures from GTT, which compiles US trade data from the Department of Commerce.

The July drop in US crude exports comes as Hurricane Barry disrupted some operations in the US Gulf for about a week before making landfall in Louisiana on 14 July.

South Korea remained the top importer of US crude with about 531,000 b/d. Canada was the second top destination with about 420,000 b/d. The other countries in the top five include China, the Netherlands and the UK.

China imported about 229,000 b/d of US crude in July, down from 292,000 b/d in June. China has returned to the top five list of US importers after its intake dropped sharply starting in the second half of last year as a trade conflict heated up with the US.

China took an average of 377,000 b/d of US crude in the first seven months of 2018 and was consistently the first or second top destination for US crude. But Chinese state-controlled trading firm Unipec stopped buying US crude in August 2018. China's imports of US crude dropped to zero between August-October of 2018 and in January of this year.

Meanwhile, the trade war between the US and China has recently escalated with China imposing a 5pc tariff on US crude starting on 1 September in retaliation against another round of US tariffs.

The July monthly trade data includes several categories of oil, including crude under 25°API, crude that is 25°API or higher, and condensate derived wholly from natural gas.

US crude exports reached a record annual high of 2mn b/d in 2018, up by 73pc from 2017.

The Energy Information Administration separately estimates weekly crude exports. US crude exports averaged 3mn b/d in the week ended 23 August, according to its most recent weekly estimates.