Commercial crude oil inventories fell by 3.2 million barrels, contrary to analyst expectations of a 1.7 million barrel increase. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that stocks excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve stood at 424.1 million barrels for the week ending Oct. 2, about 1% above the five-year average. Oil stored in the SPR decreased by 800,000 barrels to 283 million barrels. At Cushing, Okla., the Nymex delivery hub, stocks rose by 444,000 barrels to 24.7 million barrels.
U.S. crude oil production reached 14 million barrels a day, up 24,000 barrels a day from the previous week. Imports increased by 1.1 million barrels a day to 6.8 million barrels a day, while exports rose by 1.2 million barrels a day to 4.8 million barrels a day. Refineries operated at 92.7% of capacity, with crude input rising by 223,000 barrels a day to 16.5 million barrels a day.
Gasoline inventories rose by 382,000 barrels to 204.7 million barrels, against expectations of a 1.1 million barrel decline. Gasoline demand increased by 81,000 barrels a day to 8.8 million barrels a day. Distillate fuel stocks fell by 42,000 barrels to 105.1 million barrels, 12% below the five-year average, while analysts had forecast a 1.5 million barrel drop.
Source: Wall Street Journal Markets · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing