The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that crude oil inventories fell by 1.5 million barrels in the week ended July 28.
Market analysts' expected a crude-stock decline of around 3.0 million barrels, while the American Petroleum Institute late Tuesday reported a supply-gain of 1.8 million barrels.
Supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma, the key delivery point for Nymex crude, decreased by 39,000 barrels last week, the EIA said.
Total U.S. crude oil inventories stood at 481.9 million barrels as of last week.
The report also showed that gasoline inventories decreased by 2.5 million barrels, compared to expectations for a much more modest decline of 0.6 million barrels.
For distillate inventories including diesel, the EIA reported a fall of 0.2 million barrels.
Crude Oil Storage Report - August 2
Crude Oil Storage Report - August 2
Dan Steffens
Energy Prospectus Group
Energy Prospectus Group
Re: Crude Oil Storage Report - August 2
OPEC compliance to its targets improved according to Reuters, as the bulk of the increase came as Libya, with no OPEC quota, raised production as Saudi Arabia and Angola lowered production. Reuters reported that OPEC oil increased by 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) to a 2017 high. That put compliance at 84 percent according to Reuters which is up from a revised 77 percent in June, but below the 90 percent Reuters saw earlier in the year. Reuters has been the toughest grader of OPEC cuts but others also are showing a similar increase in OPEC output. This comes as OPEC is going to meet to improve compliance August 7 and 8, in Abu Dhabi which according to some was, at one point, 105%. Regardless, the fact of the matter is, even with the cheating, this is the best compliance the cartel has ever had.
Is it good enough? Well a historic decline in US crude stocks suggests it is going in the right direction.
Gasoline and distillate demand is stronger than projections made early this year.
Is it good enough? Well a historic decline in US crude stocks suggests it is going in the right direction.
Gasoline and distillate demand is stronger than projections made early this year.
Dan Steffens
Energy Prospectus Group
Energy Prospectus Group
Re: Crude Oil Storage Report - August 2
Investing.com – Crude futures settled higher on Wednesday, as investors cheered data showing supplies of U.S. crude fell for the fifth-straight week while refinery activity continued to grow.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for September delivery rose by 0.87% to settle at $49.59 a barrel, while on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent added 0.71% to trade at $52.15 a barrel.
Crude prices recovered from a 2% plunge sustained the prior session, after a report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed crude and gasoline stockpiles fell last week, pointing to an uptick in demand for crude and refinery activity.
Inventories of U.S. crude fell by roughly 1.5m barrels in the week ended July 28, below expectations of a draw of about 2.9m barrels. It was fifth-straight week of falling crude inventories.
Gasoline inventories fell by roughly 2.5m barrels, confounding expectations of a draw of 636,000 barrels while distillate stockpiles fell by 150,000 barrels, compared to expectations of a decline of 525,000 barrels.
The mostly bullish report comes amid a hoppy start to the week for oil prices, following renewed investor skepticism over Opec’s ability to tackle the glut in supply after reports showed Opec production rose to a high for the year at 33 million barrels per day (bdp). That is despite the group’s pledge to increase compliance with the deal to cut production.
In May, Opec and non-Opec members agreed to extend production cuts for a period of nine months until March, but stuck to production cuts of 1.8 million bpd agreed in November last year. The cartel members are meeting next week to discuss ways to get members back into full compliance with the agreement.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange crude futures for September delivery rose by 0.87% to settle at $49.59 a barrel, while on London's Intercontinental Exchange, Brent added 0.71% to trade at $52.15 a barrel.
Crude prices recovered from a 2% plunge sustained the prior session, after a report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed crude and gasoline stockpiles fell last week, pointing to an uptick in demand for crude and refinery activity.
Inventories of U.S. crude fell by roughly 1.5m barrels in the week ended July 28, below expectations of a draw of about 2.9m barrels. It was fifth-straight week of falling crude inventories.
Gasoline inventories fell by roughly 2.5m barrels, confounding expectations of a draw of 636,000 barrels while distillate stockpiles fell by 150,000 barrels, compared to expectations of a decline of 525,000 barrels.
The mostly bullish report comes amid a hoppy start to the week for oil prices, following renewed investor skepticism over Opec’s ability to tackle the glut in supply after reports showed Opec production rose to a high for the year at 33 million barrels per day (bdp). That is despite the group’s pledge to increase compliance with the deal to cut production.
In May, Opec and non-Opec members agreed to extend production cuts for a period of nine months until March, but stuck to production cuts of 1.8 million bpd agreed in November last year. The cartel members are meeting next week to discuss ways to get members back into full compliance with the agreement.
Dan Steffens
Energy Prospectus Group
Energy Prospectus Group