TEHRAN – Iran’s crude oil exports to key markets like China were boosted in September while shipments from rival Saudi Arabia lowered, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

Iran’s exports rose to 2.28 million barrels a day, the most since February, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Saudi Arabia’s exports were 6.68 million barrels a day, the second-lowest for this year, the data show.

According to the data from China, Iran has gained on Saudi Arabia in crude sales to the Asian country. The difference between China’s imports of Saudi oil and Iranian crude is at an eight-year low. Saudi Arabia shipped 833,000 barrels of crude a day to China in September, compared with 600,000 barrels a day from Iran.

OPEC’s third-largest producer has ramped up output and doubled exports since sanctions on its energy industry were eased in January 2016.

“In Iran, I’m expecting production to keep going up in the coming months and that exports will be up slightly,” said Robin Mills, chief executive officer of Dubai-based consultant Qamar Energy.

“I do see them taking market share slowly from the Saudis, if the Saudis hold steady on their production cuts.”

EF/MA