U.S. diesel exports surged to a record high of 1.9 million barrels last week as global supply constraints deepened. This increase is attributed to disruptions in the Gulf region and various maritime chokepoints, as well as Ukrainian drone strikes that have paralyzed parts of Russia's energy infrastructure.
Samantha Dart, co-head of global commodities research at Goldman Sachs, told Bloomberg TV, "The situation in Russia is really one thing that worries us a lot." She warned that "diesel is the oil product that is most vulnerable right now, not just because you have your seasonal demand strength ahead just in the winter, but on the supply side."
U.S. energy exporters in the Gulf region have emerged as winners, shipping a record 1.9 million barrels to overseas customers last week.
However, the trade-off from surging diesel exports is that U.S. distillate stockpiles have fallen to their lowest seasonal level since 1996, raising the risk of a tighter domestic market heading into the fall demand surge.
