China is now largest Saudi oil client

Saudi Arabia, long the largest supplier of oil to the United States, has cut US sales dramatically and is likely no longer among the top five largest US suppliers. The Saudi kingdom's new largest customer is China.
"Saudi sales to the US have fallen off the table," James Placke, a senior associate at Cambridge Energy Research Associates and former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs said.

Saudi oil sales to the United States peaked in 2002 at 1.7 mm bpd, but had fallen to 1.1 mm bpd in May, the last month for which figures are available, Placke said. Placke, who has monitored Saudi oil sales for decades, said Saudi Arabia's traditional large share of the US oil market has been a function of the country's special close relationship with the United States -- a tie that may be weakening.
"This may colour how the two parties look at each other as we go down the road," Placke said.