According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), U.S. crude stocks increased by 5.8 million barrels to 422.7 million barrels for the week ending October 4. This rise was unexpected, as analysts had forecasted a smaller increase of 2 million barrels.
Key highlights include:
Fuel inventories saw a significant drop, with combined gasoline and distillate fuels declining by approximately 9.42 million barrels, largely due to increased demand ahead of Hurricane Milton, which is expected to impact Florida.
Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub rose by 1.2 million barrels.
Total product supplied, a proxy for demand, surged by 1.34 million barrels per day to 21.19 million bpd, contributing to the decrease in fuel inventories.
Gasoline stocks fell by 6.3 million barrels to 214.9 million barrels, the lowest since September 2023, while distillate stockpiles decreased by 3.1 million barrels to 118.5 million barrels.
Refinery crude runs decreased by 101,000 barrels per day, with utilization rates dropping to 86.7%, marking the fifth consecutive week of declines.
Oil futures reacted to the report with slight losses, with Brent trading at $76.24 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate at $72.83 per barrel.