Imports from the Middle East Gulf region made up 8% of the 6.2 million bpd of US crude oil imports in 2025. These imports make up far less than those from Canada but slightly more than those from Mexico. Imports from Canada, Mexico, and elsewhere in the Americas benefit from geographic proximity, historical trade relationships, and shorter shipping times.
The US West Coast (PADD 5) accounted for 47% of all US imports from the Middle East Gulf in 2025. More than half of these volumes came from Iraq (139 000 bpd), with the rest coming from Saudi Arabia (62 000 bpd) and the UAE (28 000 bpd). The West Coast produces relatively less domestic crude oil than the US Gulf Coast (PADD 3), and a lack of pipeline access means imports of crude oil from Canada are more limited. As a result, the region is more reliant on seaborne imports to meet refinery demand for crude oil. Both the West Coast and Gulf Coast in the US also import crude oil from the Middle East Gulf to meet specific demand from refiners.
Crude oil grades produced in different regions and by different production methods can vary significantly in qualities and characteristics across the global crude oil market. Two of the most widely used measures of crude oil quality are API gravity (lightness) and sulfur content (sourness). Most refineries have a preferred slate of crude oil grades and qualities that they process to effectively utilise their equipment and produce the highest value products in their market.
Light sweet grades account for most domestic production, but the US relies on imports for heavier, more sour grades. In 2025, 88% of crude oil imports from the Middle East Gulf were medium sour grades of crude oil (with API gravities between 22 degrees and 38 degrees and with sulfur contents of 0.5% or more). This volume amounts to about 432 000 bpd but only makes up about 17% of all US imports of these grades.
The spot markets for Mars crude oil (a medium sour) and Light Louisiana Sweet (LLS) crude oil (a light sweet) indicate the difference in value between medium sour and light sweet crude oil grades for the US refining industry. Typically, medium sour grades are relatively harder to refine so they sell at a discount to light sweet grades. In 2025, the Mars discount to LLS averaged US$2/bbl. Since March, however, Mars has traded at a premium of US$1/bbl relative to LLS because of supply disruptions in the Middle East.
The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) stores crude oil for distribution to US refineries in response to market disruptions. Since 2024, the SPR has acquired crude oil of two specifications: one sweet (low sulfur) and one sour (high sulfur), both of which are of medium API gravity. The release of crude oil from the SPR announced on 11 March will supply some volume of displaced medium sour crude oil that would have otherwise been supplied from the Middle East Gulf. SPR volumes are primarily distributed to refiners along the US Gulf Coast, and the use of Jones Act compliance waivers may make it easier to move crude oil from the Gulf Coast to refiners on the West Coast.