Upgrade to SI Premium - Free Trial

Kuwait offers crude oil to Asian refiners for first time since Iran war began

June 9, 2026 6:41 AM

Investing.com -- Kuwait is offering to sell crude oil to refiners in Asia for the first time since the Iran war began, marking another sign that oil flows from Persian Gulf producers are resuming despite Tehran's threats to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.

State-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp. is offering at least 4 million barrels of the nation's main export grade to refiners in China and South Korea, the report said. The crude is being transported on two very large crude carriers.

The offers signal that flows through Hormuz are beginning to reopen, a development that has occurred alongside increased U.S. coordination of transits. The United Arab Emirates has also sold millions of barrels of oil from inside the Persian Gulf to Asian refiners. Flows remain well below levels seen before the war.

Oil from Kuwait, the region's fifth-largest producer, loads from locations deep inside the Persian Gulf, requiring tankers to pass through Hormuz to reach global markets.

The barrels being offered have already exited the waterway and can be delivered to Asian ports quickly, according to the report.

Categories

Investing