U.S. Crude Stockpiles Rise Modestly as Fuel Inventories Fall Sharply

U.S. commercial crude oil inventories posted a smaller-than-expected increase last week, while stockpiles of gasoline and distillates fell more sharply than analysts had forecast, suggesting robust fuel demand. The mixed data comes from the Energy Information Administration's latest weekly report released Wednesday.

Crude Inventories Edge Higher

Crude oil stockpiles in the U.S. increased by 95,000 barrels to 428.9 million barrels for the week ended August 21, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported. This build was significantly smaller than the 597,000-barrel increase that analysts surveyed had anticipated.

The report also noted a build at the key delivery hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, where inventories rose by 1.2 million barrels. This location is the designated settlement point for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures, making its inventory levels a closely watched metric for oil traders.

Fuel Demand Signals Strength

In contrast to the slight build in crude, inventories of refined products saw significant drawdowns, pointing to solid consumer and industrial demand heading into the end of the summer driving season.

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Key figures on refined products include:

• Gasoline stocks: Fell by 2.5 million barrels to 206.8 million barrels. This was a much larger decline than the consensus forecast for a 0.7 million-barrel drop.
• Distillate stockpiles: Decreased by 2.2 million barrels to 103.4 million barrels. This category, which includes diesel and heating oil, also surpassed analyst expectations for a 1.6 million-barrel decline.

Refinery Activity Remains High

The EIA data showed that refinery activity remained robust. While refinery crude runs decreased slightly by 2,000 barrels per day during the week, overall utilization rates ticked up by 0.2 percentage points.

Refineries operated at 97.4% of their total capacity, indicating that facilities continue to run at a very high level to process crude oil and meet strong demand for transportation fuels.