US commercial crude oil inventories, excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, declined 2.6 million bbl during the week ended Dec. 9 compared with the previous week’s total, according to the US Energy Information Administration’s Petroleum Status Report.
At 483.2 million bbl, US crude inventories are near the upper limit of the average range for this time of year. EIA reported a 2.4 million-bbl drop for the previous week (OGJ Online, Dec. 7, 2016).
A survey of analysts and traders conducted by The Wall Street Journal projected US crude stockpiles fell 1.7 million bbl during the week ended Dec. 9.
The American Petroleum Institute’s own data, meanwhile, showed a 4.7 million-bbl drop for the week.
Further gasoline builds
Total motor gasoline inventories gained 500,000 bbl last week, and are well above the upper limit of the average range. Finished gasoline inventories decreased while blending components inventories increased.
Distillate fuel inventories lost 800,000 bbl, but are above the upper limit of the average range for this time of year. Propane-propylene inventories fell 3.6 million bbl, but are near the upper limit of the average range. Total commercial petroleum inventories decreased 2 million bbl.
US crude refinery inputs during the week ended Dec. 9 averaged 16.5 million b/d, up 57,000 b/d from the previous week’s average. Refineries operated at 90.5% of their operable capacity.
Both gasoline production and distillate fuel production dropped to 9.8 million b/d and 5 million b/d, respectively.
US crude imports averaged 7.4 million b/d, down 943,000 b/d from the previous week’s average. Over the last 4 weeks, crude imports averaged 7.7 million b/d, down 2% from the same 4-week period last year.
Total motor gasoline imports, including both finished gasoline and gasoline blending components, averaged 624,000 b/d. Distillate fuel imports averaged 233,000 b/d.
