U.S. Crude-Oil Stockpiles Expected to Decline

According to a survey conducted by The Wall Street Journal, U.S. crude-oil stockpiles are projected to have declined from the previous week. Data from the Department of Energy (DOE), specifically the Energy Information Administration (EIA), will be released on Thursday at 11 a.m. ET, one day later than usual due to the Labor Day holiday.

Crude-Oil Stockpiles

The average of estimates from nine analysts and traders suggests that U.S. commercial crude-oil stockpiles will have decreased by 2.1 million barrels for the week ended Sept. 1. Out of the nine forecasters, eight are predicting a decrease, while one expects an increase. Expectations range from a decrease of 7 million barrels to an increase of 2 million barrels.

Gasoline Inventories

Analysts anticipate a decline of 1.2 million barrels in gasoline inventories compared to the previous week. Estimates range from a decrease of 2.8 million barrels to an increase of 800,000 barrels.

Distillate Stocks

Stocks of distillates, primarily diesel fuel, are expected to decrease by 200,000 barrels from the previous week. Forecasts range from a decrease of 2 million barrels to an increase of 1.6 million barrels.

Refinery Use

Refinery use is likely to have climbed by 0.1 percentage point from the previous week, reaching 93.4%. Forecasts range from a decrease of 0.5 percentage point to an increase of 0.5 percentage point. Two analysts did not make a forecast.

Here are the forecasts provided by analysts:

| Analyst | Crude | Gasoline | Distillates | Refinery Use | |—————————-|——-|———-|————-|————–| | Again Capital | -2.9 | -2.8 | -1.1 | 0.4 | | Confluence Investment Mgmt | -1.5 | -1 | 1 | 0.5 | | DTN | -2.5 | -1.8 | 0.5 | -0.5 | | Excel Futures | -1.4 | 0.8 | 1.6 | -0.4 | | Spartan Capital Securities | -0.7 | -2.4 | 1.2 | n/f | | Mizuho | 2 | -1 | -1 | 0.5 | | Price Futures Group | -4 | -2 | -2 | unch | | Ritterbusch and Associates | -1 | -0.5 | -2 | 0.3 | | Tradition Energy | -7 | -0.3 | 0.1 | n/f | | Average | -2.1 | -1.2 | -0.2 | 0.1 |

Note: “n/f” denotes no forecast, and “unch” denotes unchanged.

Note: Numbers are in millions of barrels, with the exception of refinery use, which is in percentage points.