NEW YORK, August 6. /TASS/. US imports of Saudi Arabian oil dropped to zero in July, the first time that’s happened for an entire month since 1985, as the US-Iran conflict all but shut down Persian Gulf crude flows, Bloomberg quoted preliminary government data as saying.

US refiners were buying more than 600,000 barrels of Saudi oil a day earlier this year.

The agency said US refineries have begun to look for alternatives to Saudi supplies, including light grades of oil from fields in the United States.

Venezuela has become a major beneficiary in this situation, having supplied about 600,000 barrels of its oil in July compared to around 100,000 barrels at the beginning of the year.

The United States and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28. In June, Washington and Tehran signed a memorandum of understanding providing for an immediate cessation of hostilities on all fronts, including in Lebanon. However, on the night of July 8, the United States resumed large·scale strikes against Iran, accusing it of violating the agreements on the Strait of Hormuz.