Russia Surpasses Saudi Arabia as Largest Crude Exporter Amid Global Shift

The global crude oil trade saw a significant shift in the first half of 2026, marked by a redistribution of supply rather than uniform growth. According to Signal Ocean data, global crude loadings declined by 7.4% year-over-year from 1.13 billion mt in February-July 2025 to 1.05 billion mt in the same period this year.

Russia emerged as the world's largest crude exporter during the February-July period, loading 130.89 million mt, up 7.6% year-over-year. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, recorded a sharp decline of 23.2% to 114.64 million mt in loadings.

The United Arab Emirates demonstrated strong short-term momentum, with exports nearly doubling from 10.38 million mt in May to 21.06 million mt in July. This growth helped offset the severe contraction from other Arabian Gulf suppliers.