US crude oil inventories fell by 3.4 million barrels for the week ending July 26, excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).
The total US crude oil inventory stands at 433.0 million barrels, which is roughly 4% below the 5-year average for this time of year.
The EIA also reported a decrease in total motor gasoline inventories by 3.7 million barrels from the previous week, bringing them about 3% below the 5-year average. Both finished gasoline and blending component inventories saw declines last week. Conversely, distillate fuel inventories rose by 1.5 million barrels but remain 7% below the 5-year average.
Propane-propylene inventories grew by 2.9 million barrels from the previous week, now 16% above the 5-year average for this period.
Crude oil refinery inputs averaged 16.2 million barrels per day (b/d) for the week ended July 26, a drop of 258,000 b/d from the previous week’s average. Refineries operated at 90.1% capacity.
Gasoline production decreased to an average of 10.0 million b/d, while distillate fuel production increased to 5.0 million b/d.
US crude oil imports averaged 7.0 million b/d, up 82,000 b/d from the prior week. Over the last four weeks, imports averaged 6.9 million b/d, a 5.9% increase compared to the same period last year. Motor gasoline imports averaged 917,000 b/d, and distillate fuel imports averaged 140,000 b/d.