Gulf Arab states have stepped up crude production to compensate for Iranian exports, which have dropped as major customers such as India and China face pressures from the West to trim their purchases from Tehran.
Sanctions over Iran's nuclear program have targeted Tehran's critical oil exports.
The Saudi Arabian Oil Co., known as Aramco, said Tuesday that oil production rose to 3.479 billion barrels in 2012, compared with 3.310 billion barrels in 2011. A statement on the Aramco website says it was the highest production in the company's history.