Saudi Aramco, the world's largest oil exporter, said on Tuesday that global oil markets could face catastrophic consequences if Iran's war continues to disrupt shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
Amin Nasser, the company’s CEO, said at a press conference held to announce the company’s results for 2025 that the impact of this disruption is not limited to the shipping and insurance sectors, but threatens severe cascading consequences for the aviation, agriculture, automotive and other sectors.
He noted that global oil inventories had reached their lowest level in five years, and said the crisis would accelerate the rate of decline in inventories, adding that resuming shipping traffic in the strait was of paramount importance.
He said there would be disastrous consequences for global oil markets, and the longer this turmoil lasts, the more severe the repercussions will be for the global economy.
Al-Nasser stated that a small fire that broke out last week at Aramco's Ras Tanura refinery, the largest refinery in Saudi Arabia, was quickly extinguished and brought under control, adding that the refinery is in the process of restarting operations.
In a related context, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard announced on Tuesday that it would not allow a single liter of oil to be shipped from the Middle East if the American and Israeli attacks continued, prompting President Donald Trump to threaten Iran that the United States would inflict even harsher blows if it blocked exports from the vital energy-producing region.
Nasser's comments came after Aramco reported that its annual profits fell 12 percent due to lower crude oil prices, but that it would repurchase up to $3 billion worth of shares in its first-ever share buyback.
