EIA DATA: Commercial crude stocks hit 10-mth low as exports rise

Quantum Commodity Intelligence – US commercial crude oil stocks fell for a fourth consecutive week to hit a 10-month low at the start of September as exports jumped to a one-month high and imports slowed, EIA data showed Thursday.

US crude inventories sank a further 6.3 million barrels in the week to September 1, after they had already tumbled by 10.6 million barrels a week earlier to leave levels at 416.6 million barrels – its lowest level since December last year.

Similar to last week, the sharp drop surprised markets which had pencilled in a 2-million-barrel weekly drop, according to a Reuters poll, and beating the 5.5-million-barrel drop revealed by the API on Wednesday.

The data means that US crude stocks have fallen by nearly 29 million barrels over the past four weeks, its sharpest drop since July 2021.

While WTI futures initially firmed following the report's release, US crude futures eased 0.3% afterwards to leave the October contract at $87.25/b, down 0.2% from the prior settle.

US commercial crude stocks crunched as exports rose by 400,000 bpd on the week to 4.93 million bpd, its highest since late July, although imports ticked higher to 6.77 million bpd.

That left net inflows at 1.83 million bpd, its smallest in six weeks.

US refining remained firm at 16.62 million bpd, its third-highest weekly level over the past three months, further drawing from domestic crude stocks.

Crude production was static for a third straight week at 12.8 million bpd, its highest since early 2020.

Finally, crude oil stocks kept in the strategic reserve rose by 0.8 million barrels on the week to just over 350 million barrels, a three-month high, after having its lowest level since 1983 last month at 347.7 million.