South Korean official: 270 million barrels of crude oil and 2.1 million tons of naphtha have been obtained from four Middle Eastern countries.

According to a Reuters report on the 15th, Kang Hoon-sik, Chief Presidential Secretary of South Korea, stated at a press conference on Wednesday that South Korea has secured a supply guarantee of 273 million barrels of crude oil from four Middle Eastern countries, covering the supply until the end of this year.

During the same period, South Korea also secured 2.1 million tons of naphtha—this is the core feedstock for producing basic chemicals in the South Korean petrochemical industry.

The announcement comes at a time when the outlook for navigation through the Strait of Hormuz remains uncertain. According to media citing informed sources, Middle Eastern oil-producing countries have requested Asian refineries to submit their crude oil loading plans for April and May. Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil exporter, has also notified customers to submit demand plans for cargoes to be loaded from Yanbu and Ras Tanura ports in May.

However, the restoration of supply faces dual constraints. The Saudi official news agency SPA quoted officials from the Ministry of Energy as saying that attacks on Saudi energy facilities have led to a decrease in the country's oil production capacity by about 600,000 barrels per day; the East-West Pipeline—considered a key land export route to bypass the Strait of Hormuz—has also seen its throughput reduced by about 700,000 barrels per day, raising questions about the reliability of alternative export options.

Meanwhile, the waiver on U.S. sanctions against Iranian oil exports will expire on April 19, and further tightening of the blockade is taking shape. A previous article from WallstreetCN mentioned that the Trump administration has decided to let the temporary sanctions waiver on Iranian offshore crude oil shipments expire as scheduled.

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