Archive: Tony Webster, CC BY 4.0.
U.S. commercial crude oil inventories fell by 1.9 million barrels last week while gasoline stockpiles jumped by 3.9 million barrels, a mixed picture of supply and demand as oil prices pushed higher for a second day.
Commercial crude stocks, excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, stood at 410.6 million barrels in the week ended October 23, 4% below the five-year average for this time of year, the Energy Information Administration said Wednesday in its Weekly Petroleum Status Report.
Gasoline inventories rose by 3.9 million barrels, leaving them 2% below the five-year average, while distillate stocks, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 1.5 million barrels to 10% below average. Total commercial petroleum inventories decreased by 3.0 million barrels for the week.
Refineries processed 16.5 million barrels a day, down 123,000 barrels a day from the previous week, operating at 92.8% of capacity. Crude oil imports rose by 616,000 barrels a day to 6.4 million barrels a day.
Over the past four weeks, total products supplied, a proxy for fuel demand, averaged 20.8 million barrels a day, up 0.2% from the same period a year earlier.
Oil prices extended their gains after the report. December West Texas Intermediate futures stood at $102.36 a barrel, up $2.46, or 2.5%, on CME Group’s market display last updated at 10:34 a.m. Eastern on October 28. CME says its displayed market data is delayed by at least 10 minutes. The figure is a timestamped futures quote, not a live spot price. Prices have climbed this week as Saudi Arabia said its air defenses intercepted ballistic missiles fired by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
JBizNews Desk | Washington
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