Saudi Arabia drives sharp OPEC+ oil output increase in September despite Iran war disruptions

OPEC+ oil production rose sharply in September, led by a major increase from Saudi Arabia despite continued disruptions to regional shipments caused by the Iran war.

The group produced an average of 39.07 million barrels per day in September, up about 900,000 barrels per day from August, according to OPEC's monthly report.

Saudi Arabia told OPEC it produced 8.372 million barrels per day, an increase of more than 2 million barrels per day from August. Saudi Aramco increased loadings from Gulf export terminals after an attack on the East-West pipeline disrupted shipments through the Red Sea.

Russia's production, by contrast, fell by 38,000 barrels per day in September amid Ukrainian attacks on its energy infrastructure.

OPEC+ had agreed to raise September production targets by 188,000 barrels per day as part of the continued unwinding of earlier voluntary cuts. Regional oil flows have been recovering, but shipments remain below levels recorded before the Iran war began in late February.