In the wake of the latest report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), oil futures experienced a notable decline as crude inventories surged in the two weeks leading up to November 10. The EIA disclosed that crude inventories rose significantly by 17.5 million barrels, reaching a total of 439.4 million barrels.
The EIA further revealed that crude stocks increased by 3.6 million barrels in the previous week. This comes in addition to a substantial 13.9 million build reported the week before, which had not been disclosed due to a system upgrade.
Despite the surge in crude inventories, stocks remained 2% below their 5-year average. Gasoline stockpiles witnessed a decrease of 1.5 million barrels, while distillate stocks were down by 1.4 million barrels.
As a result of these developments, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for December delivery settled down by 2%, closing at $76.66 a barrel. The decline reflects the market’s response to the significant increase in crude inventories reported by the EIA, underscoring the delicate balance of supply and demand dynamics within the oil market.