US crude oil inventories up by 1.5% for week ending March 20

US commercial crude oil inventories increased by 1.5% in the week ending March 20, according to data released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) late Wednesday.

Inventories rose by 6.9 million barrels to around 456.2 million barrels. Market expectations had predicted a decrease of 1.3 million barrels.

Strategic petroleum reserves, which are excluded from commercial crude stocks, remained unchanged at 415.4 million barrels, the data revealed.

Over the same period, gasoline inventories decreased by 2.6 million barrels to about 241.4 million barrels.

– Crude production declines

EIA data showed that US crude oil production fell by 11,000 barrels per day (bpd) to approximately 13.6 million bpd during the week ending March 20.

US crude oil imports decreased by 730,000 bpd to around 6.46 million bpd, while exports declined by 1.58 million barrels to about 3.32 million bpd over the same period.

In the Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) released on March 11, the EIA predicted that US crude oil output would reach an average of 13.6 million bpd in 2026.

• Energy Information Administration (EIA)
• Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO)