EIA Sees Massive Uptick in US Crude Oil Inventories

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported on Wednesday that crude oil inventories in the United States surged by 17.4 million barrels during the week ending August 7. This significant rise brings the commercial stockpiles to 424.4 million barrels, marking a level that is 2% below the five-year average for this period.

The data release comes a day after the American Petroleum Institute (API) released its figures, which indicated a more substantial increase of 9.072 million barrels in the same period. Following the API's release, crude oil futures experienced a decline in early trading as two days of steady gains came to an end. By 9:51 a.m. in New York, Brent futures were trading at $88.52 per barrel, down $0.39, or 0.44%, from the previous day but up roughly $9 per barrel compared to the same time last week.

Similarly, WTI futures were slightly lower at $82.76 per barrel, a $0.44 decrease, or 0.53%, from the same period last week. For total motor gasoline, inventories decreased by 1.0 million barrels, following a drop of 1.6 million barrels in the previous week. The average daily gasoline production also fell to 9.6 million barrels.

Middle distillates saw a 100,000-barrel decrease in inventories, while daily production increased to an average of 5.3 million barrels. Distillate inventories are currently 12% below the five-year average. Overall, products supplied, which serve as an indicator of U.S. oil demand, averaged 20.7 million barrels per day over the last four weeks, a 2.1% decrease compared to the same period last year.

Gasoline demand averaged 9.0 million barrels per day over the last four weeks, while distillate demand averaged 3.7 million barrels, a 1.9% increase year over year.