The Energy Information Administration (EIA) released its report on Wednesday, which showed that U.S. crude inventories had increased by 1.2 million barrels for the week ended February 24th. This was significantly higher than the 350,000 barrel increase predicted by analysts polled by S&P Global Commodity Insights. The report also revealed that gasoline inventories had declined by 900,000 barrels, while distillate supplies rose by 200,000 barrels. The analyst survey had estimated that gasoline inventories would drop by 300,000 barrels, and that distillates would decrease by 700,000 barrels.
The EIA data also showed that crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma Nymex delivery hub had increased by 300,000 barrels for the week. This was in contrast to the expectations of a 400,000 barrel drop in inventories. The report noted that total U.S. crude inventories had risen to 449.9 million barrels, which was 6% higher than the five-year average.
Refinery utilization rates increased by 1.5 percentage points to 82.5%, which was higher than the rate of 81.7% seen in the previous week. This was slightly lower than the five-year average utilization rate of 83.7%. The EIA report also noted that U.S. crude production had remained unchanged at 11 million barrels per day for the week ended February 24th.
The EIA report also showed that imports of crude oil into the United States had decreased by 1.3 million barrels per day to an average of 6.2 million barrels per day for the week ended February 24th. This was lower than the seven-week high of 7.5 million barrels per day seen in the previous week.
Overall, the EIA report showed that U.S. crude inventories had increased for the week ended February 24th, while gasoline and distillate inventories had declined. Refinery utilization rates had also increased, while crude imports had decreased. The report highlighted the current state of the U.S. oil market and provided useful insight into the direction of the market in the near future.
The report also provided an overview of the global oil market, noting that OPEC and its allies had cut production by 1.2 million barrels per day since the start of the year. This was in line with the group’s commitment to reduce output by 1.7 million barrels per day in order to balance the market and support prices. The report also noted that global demand for oil had been affected by the coronavirus pandemic, with demand in the Asia-Pacific region dropping sharply.
The EIA report also highlighted the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the global economy, noting that the International Energy Agency (IEA) had revised its 2020 oil demand growth forecast to 825,000 barrels per day, down from 1.2 million barrels per day in its previous forecast. This was due to the slowdown in economic activity as a result of the pandemic.
Overall, the EIA report provided a comprehensive overview of the current state of the global oil market. It highlighted the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on demand and the efforts of OPEC and its allies to reduce production in order to balance the market and support prices. The report also provided useful insight into the direction of the market in the near future.