finance
U.S. Crude Oil Exports Hit Record 5.2 Million Barrels Per Day in April 2026
U.S. crude oil exports surged to 5.2 million barrels per day in April 2026, a more than 30% increase from February, driven by disruptions from the Iran war. The Port of Corpus Christi handled about half of these exports, marking its busiest quarter ever. Iranian oil tankers faced U.S. interventions in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean.
TA
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U.S. 9 million barrels per day in February, as the Iran war disrupted Middle East supplies. U.S.
Exports in April, with the Houston port making up most of the rest, according to data from Kpler. 2 million barrels per day in 2025, said Kent Britton, CEO of the Port of Corpus Christi. The port had its busiest first quarter in history during Q1 2026, with March 2026 marking the busiest month ever.
Ship traffic there climbed to more than 240 vessels in March, exceeding the normal monthly figure of 200 vessels. "It's a constant parade of tankers coming in and out," Britton said. U.S.
Ports on any given day in April 2026, double the volume seen in 2025, Kpler data shows. Each VLCC can typically carry up to 2 million barrels. U.S.
Gulf Coast due to Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. "Asian markets are buying whatever they can get their hands on, so they're taking a lot of light sweet crude," said Matt Smith, director of commodity research at Kpler. The volume of refined product exports from Corpus Christi to the Middle East was higher in Q1 2026 than all of 2025, Britton said.
Before the war, the Port of Corpus Christi ranked as the third-largest oil export terminal in the world, behind Ras Tanura in Saudi Arabia and Basra in Iraq. The Perseus Star crude oil tanker departed the Port of Corpus Christi on Saturday in February 2026. Twenty-five tankers departed Iran with crude oil during April 2026, according to TankerTrackers.
Seven of those tankers were redirected back to Iran by the USA from the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean. Two of the twenty-five tankers were seized by the USA in the Indian Ocean, TankerTrackers reported. One of the tankers reached the Far East.
