According to refinery sources, Saudi Arabia has reduced the supply of April-loading crude to at least four north Asian buyers by up to 15% while meeting the usual monthly requirements of Indian refiners. Saudi Arabia’s supply cut comes after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its partners, known as OPEC+, agreed earlier this month to extend most of their supply cuts into April.

For the third month in a row, Saudi Arabia has agreed to maintain a voluntary production reduction of an additional 1 million barrels per day. According to the reports, Chinese refiners received a slight cut in Saudi supply, while Japanese buyers saw a volume reduction of between 10% and 15%. According to one of the reports, Saudi Aramco is also commissioning its 400,000-BPD Jizan refinery in the country’s southwest, which could have decreased exports.

Saudi Aramco has denied Indian refiners’ demands for additional supplies in April but will maintain the country’s average monthly supplies, according to three Indian refining sources. A request for comment from Saudi Aramco was not immediately returned. India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, and the buyer had repeatedly urged major oil producers to relax supply restrictions, blaming Saudi Arabia’s voluntary cuts for driving up global oil prices.

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