Oil-loading operations in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, resumed after being temporarily halted following staff evacuations due to Iranian attacks targeting the Saudi-ExxonMobil Samref refinery on the Red Sea, Reuters reported on March 19. The Samref refinery is one of the locations Iran vowed to target as part of its retaliation for the March 18 Israeli strikes on the South Pars gas field.

Oil prices surged in response to the Iranian attack on Samref and the temporary halt in Yanbu oil loading. Saudi Arabia has recently increased its reliance on Yanbu port, which connects to the East-West pipeline, to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed. Over a five-day average, Yanbu port currently exports about 4.2 million barrels of oil a day, around triple the amount it exported in prewar periods.