Saudi Arabia has successfully defended its share of the U.S. oil market even as rising domestic production from shale and growing pipeline imports from Canada have cut seaborne imports from other countries. Saudi crude exports to the United States have remained relatively constant at around 1.2 million barrels per day since 2009, even as tanker arrivals from other countries have halved from 6 million to 3 million bpd ( tmsnrt.rs/1Kf7s4t ). The Saudis have defended their market share through a combination of luck, strategic relationships and skilful marketing, a model the kingdom is now seeking to replicate in fast-growing fuel markets such as China. CRUDE OIL QUALITY Saudi Arabia has been fortunate in that the oil produced from shale is not in direct competition with its own crude exports ( tmsnrt.rs/1Kf7sBx ). […]