US Crude Oil Inventories Fall More than Expected

US crude inventories fell by 7.167 million barrels to 404.5 million barrels in the week ended July 24, compared with market expectations for a 1.3 million-barrel draw. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub fell by 771 thousand barrels in the week. Refinery crude runs rose by 271 thousand barrels per day. Refinery utilization rates rose by 1.1 percentage points in the week to 97.2%. Gasoline stocks rose by 7 thousand barrels to 211.3 million barrels, compared with expectations for a 715 thousand-barrel draw. Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 1.062 million barrels in the week to 110.6 million barrels, versus expectations for a 146 thousand-barrel rise. Net US crude imports fell by 237 thousand barrels per day.

Crude inventories in the US rose by 2.011 million barrels in the week ended July 17, compared with market expectations for a 1.25 million-barrel draw. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub fell by 674 thousand barrels in the week. US gasoline stocks rose by 765 thousand barrels in the week, versus expectations for a 1.54 million-barrel draw. Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 1.395 million barrels, above forecasts for a 0.83 million-barrel rise. Net US crude imports increased by 485 thousand barrels per day.

US crude oil inventories fell by 1.693 million barrels in the week ended July 10, reversing the previous week's 2.998 million-barrel increase, which had marked the first inventory build in eleven weeks. The decline, however, was smaller than market expectations for a 2.6 million-barrel draw. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub increased by 0.43 million barrels. Refinery crude runs rose by 0.099 million barrels per day. Gasoline inventories declined by 1.533 million barrels, exceeding expectations for a 0.8 million-barrel draw. Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 4.556 million barrels, compared with forecasts for a 0.1 million-barrel increase. Net US crude imports fell by 0.399 million barrels per day, the first fall in four weeks.