Crude oil inventory in the United States increased by 1.786 million barrels in the week ending September 18, 2023. This comes after a significant increase of 7.14 million barrels in the previous week. According to data from the American Petroleum Institute (API), commercial crude oil inventory, excluding strategic reserves (SPR), has decreased by 39 million barrels over the past 23 weeks. However, U.S. crude oil inventory has increased by nearly 12 million barrels this year.
Decrease in Gasoline and Distillate Inventories
In the week ending September 18, another 400,000 barrels were withdrawn from strategic reserves to support commercial inventories, bringing the new inventory in the SPR to 284.6 million barrels. This level is 429 million barrels below maximum capacity. The acceptable operational minimum for oil reserves in the SPR is between 250 to 300 million barrels, below which storage may face issues in pumping and processing oil.
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In the week ending September 11, U.S. oil production decreased to 13.944 million barrels per day, remaining unchanged from the previous week and showing an increase of 462,000 barrels compared to last year. During the same period, gasoline inventory faced a decrease of 2.16 million barrels, while the previous week saw an increase of 1.46 million barrels. Additionally, distillate inventory also decreased by 2.164 million barrels.
Analysis of Crude Oil Prices
At 3:55 PM Eastern Time on Wednesday, Brent crude oil prices fell to $97.85 per barrel, equivalent to a 2.48% decrease compared to the previous day and showing a decline of over $11 per barrel compared to the previous week. Meanwhile, WTI crude oil prices also decreased by 3.50% to $89.14 per barrel, indicating a nearly $18 per barrel drop compared to the same time last week.
Distillate inventories reached 13% below the five-year average for this time of year. These statistics indicate significant developments in the oil market and their impact on commercial inventories, which could influence future price trends and oil supply.
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