US Crude Reserves Rise as Distillate Supplies Tighten

The Energy Information Administration report arrives a day after the American Petroleum Institute estimated a smaller build of 1.786 million barrels. Despite the influx of crude, the refined product market shows signs of strain. Gasoline inventories dropped by 1.7 million barrels, and middle distillate stocks retreated by 400,000 barrels, leaving them 12% below the five-year average.

Energy markets reacted with cautious optimism despite the inventory growth. By mid-morning in New York, Brent futures rose $2.15 to reach $101.40 per barrel, while WTI gained $1.47 to trade at $92.00. Both benchmarks remain significantly lower than their values from the previous week. Daily output figures provide context for the shifting supplies, with gasoline production averaging 9.6 million barrels and distillates at 5.2 million barrels per day.

Underlying demand remains relatively resilient. Total product supplied, which serves as a proxy for consumption, averaged 20.6 million barrels per day over the last four weeks. This represents a modest 0.5% increase compared to the same period last year, though distillate demand continues to lag slightly, down 0.3% year-over-year.