Data from the Energy Information Administration showed the US crude oil inventories rose during the week ended November 19 as a sharp drop in exports offset stronger refinery demand. According to the data, US commercial oil stockpiles increased 1.02 million barrels to 434.02 million barrels last week, bringing total stocks around 7.2% below the average for the same week in 2016-2020.
The US West Coast saw the largest build among other regions at 3.05 million barrels, which brought its total stocks to 50.6 million barrels, the highest since the week toward March 5. In the Midwest, oil inventories rose 1.31 million barrels to a six-week high of 110.8 million barrels. In contrast, stocks fell 2.62 million barrels to 239.96 million barrels in the US Gulf Coast amid robust refinery crude demand.
EIA data showed total US refinery demand rose 1.6% week-on-week to 15.64 million bpd last week as refineries returned from a turnaround season. The national refinery utilisation averaged 88.6% of capacity. The rise in refinery crude demand, however, was offset by a sharp drop in exports. Last week, US crude export volumes shrank 1.02 million bpd to a six-week low of 2.61 million bpd. Meanwhile, crude imports increased by 4% to 6.44 million bpd.
