A drone attack has halted Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline, which routes oil around the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns about Korea’s crude supply as the Middle East conflict escalates. Korea’s refiners have secured more than 90% of their normal crude requirements for September and October, limiting the immediate risk. However, cargo disruptions affecting shipments arranged this month could begin hitting imports from November. Saudi Arabia supplied 34.1% of Korea’s crude imports as of July, meaning a prolonged outage could force refiners to source oil elsewhere at higher shipping and insurance costs. The government has reactivated a strategic reserve swap program (temporary government crude loans) and is considering larger freight subsidies. Higher global oil prices could also increase domestic fuel, liquefied natural gas, electricity and heating costs, while Korea’s petroleum price cap is increasingly likely to be extended.