U.S. Oil Inventories Decline as Crude Exports Rise

The latest data released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reveals a substantial drop in U.S. oil inventories for the week. This decline occurred alongside an increase in crude exports, reaching 5.3 million barrels per day.

Oil Prices Remain Low Despite Inventory Decrease

Despite the decrease in oil inventories, benchmark U.S. oil prices continued to remain low. The Nymex front-month crude contract for September delivery experienced a 1.9% decrease and was trading at $79.85 per barrel.

Significant Drop in Commercial Crude-Oil Stockpiles

Commercial crude-oil stockpiles witnessed a significant decline of 17 million barrels in the past week, totaling 439.8 million barrels. Currently, these stockpiles are approximately 1% below the five-year average. This substantial decrease was in contrast to analysts’ predictions, who had anticipated a much smaller decrease of just 1.3 million barrels compared to the previous week.

Cushing, Okla. Oil Storage Levels Experience a Decline

The EIA weekly report highlights a decrease of 1.3 million barrels in oil stored at the delivery point for U.S. stocks, Cushing, Oklahoma. The current inventory stands at 34.5 million barrels.

Steady U.S. Crude-Oil Production

U.S. crude-oil production remained unchanged from the previous week at 12.2 million barrels per day, as reported by the EIA.

Gasoline Stockpiles Increase Beyond Expectations

Contrary to expectations of a decline of 1.3 million barrels, gasoline stockpiles increased by 1.5 million barrels, reaching a total of 219.1 million barrels.

Distillate Stocks Decline and Remain Below Average

The EIA confirms a drop of 796,000 barrels in distillate stocks, primarily consisting of diesel fuel. With the current inventory standing at 117.2 million barrels, it now sits approximately 15% below the five-year average. Analysts had forecasted a smaller decrease of 100,000 barrels for last week.

Refining Capacity Utilization Rate Falls

The refining capacity utilization rate experienced a decrease of 0.7 percentage points from the previous week, reaching 92.7%. Expectations had initially predicted a smaller decrease of only 0.1 percentage points.

U.S. oil inventories for the week ended July 28:

• Crude: -17.0 million barrels
• Gasoline: +1.5 million barrels
• Distillates: -0.8 million barrels
• Refinery Use: -0.7 percentage points

(Note: Numbers are in millions of barrels, except for refinery use, which is in percentage points.)