The U.S. Energy Information Administration said on Tuesday that a conflict involving Iran has cut Middle East crude output by more than 11 mln bpd, and major consuming countries are drawing inventories at an unprecedented pace to plug the supply gap. Under EIA's current assumptions — including that maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz is unlikely to return to pre-conflict levels before early 2027 — OECD total oil stocks are projected to fall to just under 2.3 bln barrels by December.