No major short-term impact expected on S'pore refinery sector from Saudi attack: MTI

THE attack on Saudi oil plants over the weekend is not expected to have a significant impact on Singapore's refinery sector in the short term, said the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Tuesday.

In response to queries from The Business Times, MTI noted that there has been an increase in oil prices as the market reacts to the news of a pre-dawn raid by drones on two major Saudi oil installations. The attack last Saturday had slashed global supply by 5 per cent.

"Saudi Arabia's temporary decreased crude oil output may lead to a decrease in petroleum-related exports to Singapore. However, we expect Singapore's trading volume with Saudi Arabia to recover as the country restores its crude oil output," said a spokesperson from MTI.

The incident had raised concerns that oil infrastructure might be highly vulnerable to attack. It removed an estimated 5.7 million barrels of oil per day from global supply, prompting prices to soar about 15-20 per cent on Monday when markets opened.