Yanbu Terminal Recovery Helps Ease Middle East Supply Concerns

Oil prices have been on a rollercoaster ride this week due to ongoing concerns about supply disruptions in the Middle East. A 'major operational recovery' has been confirmed at Saudi Arabia's Yanbu export terminal, which was affected by a drone attack on the East-West pipeline earlier this month.

The attack had raised fears of another major hit to global supplies, but Riyadh has since restored flows through the pipeline to around 3.5 million barrels per day, up from zero after the attack. The terminal's maximum capacity is 7 million bpd.

Oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz have also recovered, hitting a seven-day average of 13.2 million barrels per day, which is 77% of the 17 million bpd that transited the waterway before the U.S.-Iran conflict.

The recovery in oil supplies has contributed to lower prices, with Brent crude futures falling 2.6% to close at $102.59 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures dropping by around 3.5% to $89.38.