U.S. crude oil production down 7% for 1999

U.S. crude oil production has dropped 7% since the beginning of the year, the American Petroleum Institute reports.

It said U.S. output was down 6.9% in April at 5.89 million b/d from the same month in 1998, and Alaskan output was off 9.9% at 1.089 million b/d.

Natural gas liquids production fell 10.7% to 1.660 million b/d.

API said, "Even though crude oil prices have risen, especially in the last 2 months, wellhead prices that (U.S.) producers receive averaged only $14/bbl, still below 1997 levels. Oil industry employment remained weak, with a total of 55,500 U.S. jobs lost since the end of 1997. And April's rig count (for U.S. drilling rigs searching for oil) averaged 125, up slightly from March but still less than half the number of rigs searching for oil a year ago."

U.S. oil imports were up 1.2% at 8.628 million b/d in April. Total U.S. imports of crude and products rose 1.1% to 10.517 million b/d.

Products status

API said gasoline deliveries were 2.5% lower at 8.107 million b/d, the first year-to-year drop since 1997.

California gasoline production fell 12% because of the closure of one refinery and technical difficulties at others, pushing West Coast imports of gasoline and gasoline blending components to more than 60,000 b/d in April.

Overall U.S. gasoline imports jumped 230,000 b/d from March to April to reach 660,000 b/d, the highest in nearly 2 years.

Kerosine jet fuel deliveries were down 0.6% at 1.579 million b/d. API said 1999 jet fuel deliveries have exceeded last year's first 4 months by 90,000 b/d and set a record for this time of year.

"It has been estimated that the U.S. and its NATO allies in the war with Yugoslavia are using an estimated average of 240,000 b/d of jet fuel and other oil products, drawing on NATO stocks or from European suppliers. The estimated NATO usage so far is 5% of world jet fuel demand."

API said U.S. residual fuel oil deliveries were at a recent-year low, 636,000 b/d or 34.2% less than a year ago. API said the apparent cause is a shrinking price competition between residual oil and natural gas.

April gasoline stocks in the U.S. gained 2.3% to 219.3 million bbl. Crude inventories were down 4.8% from a year ago at 334.3 million bbl and 8 million bbl less than at the end of March. Total stocks of crude oil and products were 1,056,100,000 bbl, up 0.7% from a year ago.

The U.S. refinery utilization rate was 96.8% in April.