RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s crude production increased to 8.98 million barrels per day in September, a rise of 57,000 bpd or 0.67 percent compared to the previous month, according to data from the Joint Organizations Data Initiative. The report also indicated that the Kingdom’s crude exports in September grew by 170,000 bpd to 5.75 million bpd, a 3.04 percent increase from August. However, Saudi Arabia’s direct burn of crude oil decreased by 120,000 bpd in September to 606,000 bpd. In line with the decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies known as OPEC+, Saudi Arabia has maintained lower crude exports and production since April 2023. The Kingdom initiated a 500,000 bpd reduction in oil output in April, extended until December 2024. It also pledged an additional cut of 1 million bpd in July, which will continue until December 2023, as announced by the Ministry of Energy earlier this month. Crude imports in China dropped by 1.3 million bpd in September, a 9.1 percent decline compared to the previous month. In the US, crude production witnessed a month-on-month decrease of 133,000 bpd in September to 12.92 million bpd, while crude exports from the US rose by 58,000 bpd to 4.2 million bpd. The JODI report highlighted that global oil demand remained at a seasonal record high for a fifth consecutive month in September, increasing by 2.5 million bpd year on year, driven by strong consumption in China, India, the US and Saudi Arabia. In September, natural gas demand for the EU and the UK combined rose by 2.8 billion cubic meters month on month. Earlier this month, OPEC had nudged up its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2023 to 2.46 million bpd, up 20,000 bpd from the previous forecast, primarily driven by the lifting of pandemic-related lockdown restrictions in China. For 2024, OPEC expects oil demand to reach 2.25 million bpd.