Seoul: South Korea's imports of crude oil from the Middle East decreased by 37 percent in April compared to the previous year, as ongoing geopolitical tensions in the region continue to affect trade, according to recent data.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) reported that South Korea's total crude imports amounted to 8.46 million tons in April, marking a 22.8 percent decline from a year earlier. Specifically, imports from the Middle East fell 37.3 percent year-on-year to 4.49 million tons, representing 53.1 percent of the total crude imports. This figure shows a significant reduction from the 65.2 percent share recorded a year ago.

Saudi Arabia, South Korea's largest crude supplier, saw its exports to the country diminish by 37.6 percent year-on-year in April, resulting in 2.14 million tons imported. In contrast, the United States increased its crude exports to South Korea by 13.4 percent, reaching 2.14 million tons, thus narrowing the import volume gap between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia to approximately 1,000 tons from 1.45 million tons in March.

In efforts to diversify its import sources, South Korea significantly increased its crude imports from other countries. Imports from Australia rose to 440,000 tons in April, marking an 89 percent increase from the previous year. Additionally, imports from Canada more than tripled to 240,000 tons. South Korea also saw a surge in crude imports from African nations, including Nigeria, which rose to 400,000 tons in April from 60,000 tons a year earlier.