Europe has surpassed Asia to become the biggest consumer of US oil for the first time in six years.

From January to May this year, Europe received an average of about 213.1 million barrels of oil and Asia 191.1 million barrels, according to Bloomberg. The last time this was the case was in 2016, when the US lifted its ban on crude exports.

This shift in oil flows underlines how much the war in Ukraine has changed the direction of energy supplies. The US and other countries imposed sanctions on Russian oil. As a result, more European countries have turned to the US to import oil, while Russia offers its oil at deep discounts to countries such as India and China, which have not imposed any bans.

Crude oil production in the US is growing, but not fast enough to meet the needs of both Asia and Europe. In addition, the Middle East appears to be constrained in its supply to Europe.

The largest producers in the region, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, are already struggling to meet their production obligations under the OPEC+ agreement. Other suppliers, such as Libya, are struggling with political unrest that limits exports.