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US commercial crude inventories fell by 3.4 million barrels to 424.2 million barrels in the week ended 14 November, reversing the prior week’s 6.4-million-barrel build and leaving stocks about 5% below the five-year average. The decline was driven by higher exports and stronger refinery throughput.

Crude imports rebounded by 729,000 bpd to 6.0 million bpd, partially offsetting last week’s drop, though the four-week average remained well below year-ago levels. Exports surged 1.3 million bpd to 4.2 million bpd, supporting the inventory draw.

Refinery activity strengthened further, with crude inputs rising 258,000 bpd to 16.2 million bpd and utilisation climbing to 90.0%, returning to typical seasonal levels. Gasoline production edged lower at 9.3 million bpd, while distillate output decreased to 4.9 million bpd.

Gasoline inventories rose 2.3 million barrels to 207.4 million, reversing the previous week’s draw, as blending components increased despite a slight drop in finished stocks. Motor gasoline supplied held near 8.8 million bpd on a four-week average, broadly steady but still slightly below last year. Distillate inventories rose modestly to 111.1 million barrels, with four-week supplied averaging 3.8 million bpd, up 0.2% year on year. Jet fuel supply rose 2.7% over the same period. Propane/propylene inventories remained steady at 105.4 million barrels, about 16% above the five-year average.

Overall, US crude stocks tightened under the influence of strong exports and robust refinery runs, while product markets showed mild softness on gasoline and distillates.

Written by: Farid Muzaffar