Saudi Arabia’s oil exports climbed back above 4 million barrels per day in September, reversing August’s 2.4 million barrels per day, the kingdom’s weakest export month since at least 2013. Analytics firm Kpler tracked the recovery, which followed the suspension of the East-West pipeline after Houthi attacks. The pipeline normally carries crude from Saudi Arabia’s eastern oil fields to Yanbu on the Red Sea, where no shipments have departed since September 12. Saudi Aramco shifted loadings to Ras Tanura and Juaymah on the Gulf coast and routed about 60 million barrels for September and October through ship-to-ship transfers (moving cargo between vessels) at Oman’s Sohar port. China, South Korea, India and Japan were the primary buyers. Strait of Hormuz flows rose 58%, from 1.2 million barrels per day on September 1 to 1.9 million barrels per day by mid-month, while Middle Eastern oil flows averaged 17.1 million barrels per day in the first half of September, only modestly below 2025 averages. Brent and WTI futures fell by more than $1 per barrel as the additional supply reached the market. The workaround remains vulnerable because Sohar transfers cost more and take longer than direct Yanbu loadings, while the Strait of Hormuz carries roughly 20% of global oil supply each day.