U.S. crude exports surged to record highs in April and May, but the increase cannot fully offset the loss of Middle Eastern barrels due to the Strait of Hormuz closure. Following the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28, the region that once routed about 20% of global crude and refined fuels has seen a sharp decline in supply, prompting Asian refiners to scramble for alternative cargoes. According to Kpler , U.S. crude exports climbed to 5.44 million barrels per day (bpd) in April and 5.48 million bpd in May, up from 3.94 million bpd in January and 3.86 million bpd in February. Exports to Asia were forecast at 3.29 million bpd in May and 2.27 million bpd in April, roughly three times the pre-war levels of 1.11 million bpd in January and 1.21 million bpd in February. Total seaborne exports to Asia fell to 14.8 million bpd in April from 18.63 million bpd in March, 24.87 million bpd in February and 24.24 million bpd in January, a loss of about 10 million bpd from pre-war levels. U.S. refined product exports are expected to rise to 3.59 million bpd in April, with 386,000 bpd heading to Asia. This is up from total product exports of 2.83 million bpd in January, of which a tiny 132,000 bpd went to Asia. This means that an additional 254,000 bpd of refined products from the United States are heading to Asia in April compared with what was shipped in January. While this is welcome to fuel-starved importers in the region, it can hardly offset the loss of more than 1.5 million bpd of product exports through the Strait of Hormuz. In January, refined fuel exports via the strait to Asia were 1.58 million bpd, but this is forecast to plummet to just 11,000 bpd in April, according to Kpler. The sharp rise in U.S. crude and product exports will obviously be beneficial to U.S. energy producers, but probably not so much for U.S. energy consumers, as domestic consumers effectively have to compete with overseas buyers for U.S. supplies. It also raises the question as to how long the United States can sustain exports at the levels being seen in April and May. It's likely that some of the crude being exported is available because of the release of strategic reserves. The United States announced that it would make 172 million barrels of crude available from its reserves on a loan basis from March to July, with companies that take the oil required to return the volumes along with extra barrels as interest at a later date. This raises the possibility that U.S. exports of crude and products may ease by July, which would likely place further stress on Asia, especially if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed to most vessels. The surge in U.S. crude and product exports, while welcome, highlights just how challenging it is for the world to adjust to the loss of Middle Eastern barrels. U.S. President Donald Trump said in early April that crude importers should "buy oil from the United States of America. We have plenty." But plenty is not enough, especially for Asia. The views expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters. Editing by Christian Schmollinger