US crude oil stocks rise by 1.4M barrels in week ended March 1

Rose Modestly

U.S. crude oil stocks rose modestly last week. As refineries ramped up capacity use, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Commercial crude-oil stocks–excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve–were up by 1.4 million barrels, to 448.5 million barrels, in the week ended March 1, and were about 1% below the five-year average for the time of year, the EIA said.

The EIA estimated U.S. crude oil production at 13.2 million barrels a day, down by 100,000 from the previous week. Crude imports rose by 837,000 barrels a day, to 7.2 million barrels a day, while exports slipped by 91,000 barrels a day, to 4.6 billion barrels a day.

U.S. refineries ran at 84.9% of capacity, up from 81.5% the previous week.

Decreased More than Expected

Stocks of gasoline and distillate fuels decreased more than expected as demand rose. Gasoline stocks were down by 4.5 million barrels, at 239.7 million barrels, and were 2% below the five-year average, the EIA said. Demand for gasoline rose by 547,000 barrels a day, to 9 million barrels a day. Gasoline stocks were expected to decline by 1.4 million barrels, according to the Journal survey.

The EIA estimated U.S. crude oil production at 13.2 million barrels a day, down by 100,000 from the previous week. Crude imports rose by 837,000 barrels a day, to 7.2 million barrels a day, while exports slipped by 91,000 barrels a day, to 4.6 billion barrels a day.