The US Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that US crude oil inventories recorded a decline last week, while gasoline and distillates stocks fell. Crude inventories fell from 6.1 million barrels to 404 million barrels in the week ending July 20, more than analysts’ forecasts, which were for a 2.3 million barrel decline.
The US Energy Information Administration said that crude inventories at the futures delivery center in Kashing, Oklahoma dropped 1.1 million barrels to 23.73 million barrels.
Crude oil refineries increased by 46,000 barrels per day to 17.29 million barrels per day, according to data from the Energy Information Administration, while refinery operating rates fell by 0.5% to 93.8%.
Gasoline stocks fell 2.3 million barrels to 233.5 million barrels, while analysts in the oil markets fell 713 thousand barrels. Data from the Energy Information Administration showed that distillate stocks, including diesel and heating oil, fell by 101,000 barrels to 121.21 million barrels, while economists’ expectations were for an increase of 207,000 barrels.
Meanwhile, net US crude oil imports fell 2.5 million barrels per day to 5.09 million bpd last week.
Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Wednesday that Russia’s oil production would rise this year to 551 million tons, equivalent to 11.02 million bpd. This would mean reaching a new 30-year-high, about 3.5 million tonnes more from earlier forecasts. Novak said Russia would continue to increase production to 555 million tonnes in 2019, after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and some outside producers, led by Russia last month, agreed to ease production cuts.
“There is much to depend on market dynamics and the need to adjust our procedures,” said Novak. Russian oil production hit a new annual average of 30.98 million bpd in 30 years, despite the country’s participation in the OPEC-led global agreement on cutting supply.
OPEC’s oil production cut helped push crude prices up to around $80 a barrel in May.
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