US Crude Oil Inventories Show a Significant Decline

According to the latest report by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), commercial crude oil inventories in the United States, excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, decreased by 1.4 million barrels to 422 million barrels for the week ending December 6.

This reduction marks a larger-than-anticipated draw, bringing the country's inventories 6 million barrels below the five-year average for this time of year. The average US crude oil refinery inputs stood at 16.7 million barrels per day during the same period, which is 251,000 barrels per day lower than the previous week's average.

Refinery Operations and Gasoline Production

Refineries operated at 92.4% of their operable capacity last week. Gasoline production saw an increase, averaging 10 million barrels per day. Imports of crude oil averaged 6 million barrels per day, a decrease of 1.3 million barrels per day.

Total Commercial Petroleum Inventories

In addition, total commercial petroleum inventories in the US declined by 900,000 barrels last week, reflecting broader inventory adjustments across the sector.