Shafaq News- Baghdad

Iraq, OPEC’s second-largest oil producer, exported 235,977,511 barrels of crude during the first four months of 2026, down from 406,107,853 barrels in the same period of 2025, according to official data released Tuesday by the State Organization for Marketing of Oil (SOMO).

The exports generated revenues of $16.03 billion during the January-April period, with SOMO attributing the decline to disruptions to maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz during March and April, a vital waterway through which Iraq ships nearly 95% of its crude exports.

Southern export terminals in Basra accounted for the largest share of shipments, exporting 213,685,493 barrels, while exports from the Kurdistan Region reached 13,617,745 barrels through available channels.

The remaining exports came from the Qayyarah oilfields and Kirkuk crude transported through Turkiye’s Ceyhan port, which Iraq used as a partial alternative export route.

Read more: Iraq's oil lifeline is blocked: Here is why the crisis runs deeper than Hormuz