US crude oil inventories down 0.3% for week ending June 30

US commercial crude oil inventories declined by 0.3% during the week ending June 30, according to data released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) late Thursday.

Inventories fell by around 1.5 million barrels to 452.2 million barrels, relative to the American Petroleum Institute’s expectation of a fall of 4.4 million barrels.

Strategic petroleum reserves, which are excluded from commercial crude stocks also declined by about 1.5 million barrels to 347.2 million barrels last week, the data revealed.

Gasoline inventories, meanwhile, declined by around 2.5 million barrels to 219.5 million barrels over the same period.

– Crude production rises

EIA data showed that US crude oil imports increased by about 459,000 barrels per day (bpd) to around 7.04 million bpd during the week ending June 30, while crude oil exports fell by around 1.44 million bpd to about 3.9 million bpd.

US crude oil production, meanwhile, rose by 203,000 bpd and stood at 12.83 million bpd over the same period.

In the Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) released on June 6, the EIA predicted crude oil output in the country would reach an average of 12.61 million bpd this year, up from 11.89 million bpd last year.

Next year, crude oil output in the country is expected to reach 12.77 million bpd.

• Energy Information Administration