Iran's Oil Exports to South Korea Double

On a day when reports indicate an increase in global oil prices, the National Oil Company of South Korea announced that Iran's oil exports to this country have more than doubled. According to the report, South Korea's oil imports from Iran grew by 104% last month. On Tuesday, April 3, Reuters reported that South Korea purchased a total of 8.184 million barrels of oil from Iran in February of this year, whereas this figure was around 6.5 million barrels the previous month and about 4 million barrels in February 2015. Statistics from the National Oil Company of South Korea indicate that in the first two months of 2016, South Korea's oil imports from Iran showed an increase of more than 140% compared to the same period last year. Seoul imported 14.651 million barrels of crude oil from Iran in January and February of this year, while this figure was only 6 million barrels in the same period last year. Iran and six world powers announced the practical implementation of the nuclear agreement in mid-January, under which Western sanctions, including severe restrictions on Iran's oil sales, were lifted. According to the International Energy Agency, Iran's oil exports reached 1.4 million barrels per day in February, and it is expected that an additional 150,000 barrels per day will be added this month. Before the sanctions, Iran exported 2.2 million barrels of crude oil daily, but during the sanctions, this figure fell to about 1 million barrels. The significant increase in Iran's oil exports to South Korea comes as Reuters recently reported that, in addition to crude oil, South Korea also wants to double its imports of gas condensates from Iran. Currently, Seoul imports up to 100,000 barrels of gas condensates (ultra-light oil produced from gas fields) from Iran daily but aims to increase this figure to 200,000 barrels. Part of the increase in South Korea's crude oil imports from Iran is due to a 21% increase in the total crude oil imports of this country last month compared to February 2015. The increase in Iran's oil exports comes at a time when, over the past two months, the price of Brent crude oil has risen above $40. The price of OPEC oil, which was around $25 in early January, surged above $36 this week. In the first half of 2014, the price of OPEC oil was $108. Meanwhile, reports indicate that Saudi Arabia has announced its readiness to stabilize its oil production level. The Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing a source in OPEC, that Saudi Arabia is prepared to keep its oil production at the current level. Major oil-producing countries, including Russia, are set to meet in Qatar on April 17 to reach an agreement to stabilize oil production to raise prices.