Russia's crude shipments surged to 3.54 million barrels a day in the four weeks through Sept. 13, the biggest weekly jump since May, according to Bloomberg tanker data. The increase coincides with soaring oil prices after drone strikes shut Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline and Houthi rebels attacked tankers in the Red Sea, disrupting Middle Eastern supplies. Brent crude hit its highest since May, lifting Russian grades.

Moscow diverted Kazakh cargoes to Novorossiysk on the Black Sea, boosting its own Ust-Luga Baltic port shipments by about one-third, or 160,000 barrels a day, versus August. In the week to Sept. 13, 38 tankers loaded 27.06 million barrels, up from 23.88 million on 33 ships the prior week. Higher prices swelled Russia's war chest, with barrels to India earning the most since early May and Chinese refiners paying over $20 a barrel above Brent for ESPO crude.

Despite export gains, Russian output fell to 8.72 million barrels a day in August, a ninth straight monthly drop and over 1 million barrels below its OPEC+ quota. Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian refineries continue nightly, while U.S. President Donald Trump blames them for rising diesel prices.