U.S. commercial crude oil inventories, excluding those in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), decreased by 3.5 million barrels from the week ending January 23 to the week ending January 30, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) highlighted in its latest weekly petroleum status report.
According to this report, which was released on February 4 and included data for the week ending January 30, crude oil stocks, not including the SPR, stood at 420.3 million barrels on January 30, 423.8 million barrels on January 23, and 423.8 million barrels on January 31, 2025. Crude oil in the SPR stood at 415.2 million barrels on January 30, 415.0 million barrels on January 23, and 395.1 million barrels on January 31, 2025, the EIA report revealed.
Total petroleum stocks – including crude oil, total motor gasoline, fuel ethanol, kerosene type jet fuel, distillate fuel oil, residual fuel oil, propane/propylene, and other oils – stood at 1.690 billion barrels on January 30, the report highlighted. Total petroleum stocks were down 25.1 million barrels week on week and up 85.1 million barrels year on year, the report pointed out.
“At 420.3 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about four percent below the five year average for this time of year,” the EIA noted in its latest weekly petroleum status report.
“Total motor gasoline inventories increased by 0.7 million barrels from last week and are about four percent above the five year average for this time of year. Finished gasoline inventories decreased, while blending components inventories increased last week,” it added.
“Distillate fuel inventories decreased by 5.6 million barrels last week and are about two percent below the five year average for this time of year. Propane/propylene inventories decreased 6.2 million barrels from last week and are about 37 percent above the five year average for this time of year,” it continued.
U.S. crude oil refinery inputs averaged 16.0 million barrels per day during the week ending January 30, according to the report, which highlighted that this was 180,000 barrels per day less than the previous week’s average.
“Refineries operated at 90.5 percent of their operable capacity last week,” the EIA said in its report.
“Gasoline production decreased last week, averaging 9.0 million barrels per day. Distillate fuel production decreased by 5,000 barrels per day last week, averaging 4.8 million barrels per day,” it added.
U.S. crude oil imports averaged 6.2 million barrels per day last week, the report noted, pointing out that this was an increase of 558,000 barrels per day from the previous week.
“Over the past four weeks, crude oil imports averaged about 6.3 million barrels per day, 3.2 percent less than the same four-week period last year,” the EIA said in its report.
“Total motor gasoline imports (including both finished gasoline and gasoline blending components) last week averaged 394,000 barrels per day, and distillate fuel imports averaged 197,000 barrels per day,” it added.
Total products supplied over the last four-week period averaged 20.8 million barrels per day, 0.9 percent above the same period last year, the EIA went on to state in the report.
“Over the past four weeks, motor gasoline product supplied averaged 8.3 million barrels per day, slightly above the same period last year,” it said.
“Distillate fuel product supplied averaged 4.0 million barrels per day over the past four weeks, down by 6.2 percent from the same period last year. Jet fuel product supplied was up 4.5 percent compared with the same four-week period last year,” it added.
Analyst Take
In a report sent to Rigzone by the Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (SEB) team today, SEB Commodities Analyst Ole R. Hvalbye outlined that the EIA’s latest weekly petroleum status report “showed a clear draw in crude inventories” but added that “the broader picture still points to a well-supplied market”.
“U.S. crude inventories fell by 3.5 million barrels last week, bringing total stocks down to 420.3 million barrels, which is around four percent below the five-year seasonal average,” he said.
“The draw was supported by lower refinery intake and solid demand, but it comes after several weeks of mixed inventory signals,” he noted.
Hvalbye went on to state that refinery runs eased slightly, “with crude throughput down 180,000 barrels per day to 16.0 million barrels per day and utilization slipping to 90.5 percent”.
“Imports moved higher, however, rising by 558,000 barrels per day to 6.2 million barrels per day, even though the four-week average remains about three percent below last year – i.e., the crude draw looks more operational than structural,” he added.
Looking at “the product side”, Hvalbye said in the report that “the picture was split”.
“Gasoline inventories increased modestly by 0.7 million barrels and now sit about four percent above the five-year average, confirming that the gasoline market remains comfortably supplied,” he said.
“Distillates, on the other hand, saw a sharp 5.6 million barrel draw, pulling stocks down to roughly two percent below seasonal norms,” he noted.
“Part of this reflects winter demand and weather effects, but it also follows a period of elevated distillate inventories, so one strong draw does not change the broader balance on its own,” he added.
Hvalbye went on to note that propane inventories fell by 6.2 million barrels, “yet stocks remain very high, still around 37 percent above the five-year average”.
“In total, commercial petroleum inventories fell a hefty 25.3 million barrels last week [excluding the SPR], largely driven by draws in crude, distillates, and propane,” he stated.
Demand indicators were broadly stable, according to Hvalbye.
“Total products supplied averaged 20.8 million barrels per day over the past four weeks, up 0.9 percent YoY. Gasoline demand was slightly higher YoY, distillate demand was down 6.2 percent, while jet fuel continued to outperform, up 4.5 percent YoY,” he noted.
“The crude draw helps explain why the front end has stayed bid, but elevated gasoline stocks and mixed product demand underline that the U.S. market is still well supplied overall,” Hvalbye said.
“The inventory data does not challenge the broader surplus narrative right here and now, it merely adds some near-term tightness at the front of the curve,” he concluded.
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