Russia's Seaborne Crude Exports Fall to Lowest Level Since May

According to Oilprice.com, in a report published Tuesday, August 11, 2026 (20 Mordad 1405), Russia's seaborne crude exports averaged 3.71 million barrels a day in the four weeks through August 9 (18 Mordad), the lowest level since May; Bloomberg vessel tracking data showed shipments averaged just 3.25 million barrels a day in the latest week, down from 3.5 million a week earlier. The drop came after industry sources said last week that Russian crude and condensate production rose by roughly 100,000 barrels a day in July to above 9 million barrels a day; Oilprice.com said the apparent contradiction is explained by a temporary lull in Ukrainian drone attacks on refineries in the second half of July, which let more crude flow into domestic processing rather than exports. Novorossiysk, one of Russia's main Black Sea export outlets, has been operating at roughly half its peak crude loading rate following attacks on tankers, and Turkey has also temporarily restricted some Black Sea traffic. According to the same report, Ukraine struck five Russian refineries in the first week of August and two more this week.