EIA - US crude inventories fall for seventh straight week
(Reuters) US crude oil inventories fell for a seventh consecutive week, within analysts’ forecasts but far less than market expectations amid a drop in refinery runs and higher imports, while gasoline stocks also fell less than expected, the US Energy Information Administration said on Thursday.
Crude inventories fell 2.2 MMbbl in the week to July 1, in line with analysts' expectations for a decrease of 2.3 MMbbl. Crude futures, however, had risen after the American Petroleum Institute, a trade group, late Wednesday reported a much bigger 6.7 MMbbl drop.
Gasoline stocks fell 122 Mbbl, less than analysts' expectations for a 353 Mbbl drop.
"Imports remain strong and refiners have been more the meeting the gasoline demand," said John Kilduff, a partner at New York-based energy hedge fund Again Capital. "Expectations were high for this report, and they were dashed."
US crude imports rose 808 Mbpd.
Refinery crude runs dipped by 8,000 bpd and utilization rates slipped 0.5% to 92.5% of capacity, the EIA data showed.
Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub for US futures fell by a slight 82 Mbbl, the EIA said.
Crude oil futures reversed gains after the data. US crude futures fell $0.53, or 1.1%, to $46.90 per barrel. Brent crude futures lost $0.53 at $48.27 per barrel.
The report was bearish in light of expectations for larger crude and gasoline draws, said Matt Smith, an analyst at oil cargo tracker and energy data provider ClipperData.
"A drop in refinery utilization in combination with super-strong imports helped to stymie the draw to crude," he said.
Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell 1.6 MMbbl, versus expectations for an increase of 31 Mbbl, the EIA data showed.
Reporting By David Gaffen and Jessica Resnick-Ault
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