U.S. Crude Inventories Rise as Fuel Stocks Fall Amid Iran War Supply Fears
Oil prices climbed Wednesday after the Energy Information Administration reported a larger-than-expected build in crude stockpiles, even as gasoline and distillate inventories declined sharply on rising consumer demand.
Crude Stocks Build as Imports Rise and Exports Fall
U.S. crude inventories rose by 3.8 million barrels to 443.1 million barrels in the week ended March 6, according to the Energy Information Administration’s weekly petroleum status report. The build was significantly larger than the 1.1 million-barrel increase analysts had forecast and was driven by higher imports and lower exports.
Net crude imports rose by 661,000 barrels per day during the week, while exports fell by 563,000 bpd to 3.43 million bpd.
Stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub, the key pricing point for U.S. benchmark crude, rose by 117,000 barrels to their highest level since August 2024. Stockpiles along the U.S. Gulf Coast also climbed to their highest point since June 2024.
Fuel Inventories Decline as Demand Rises
Despite the crude build, fuel inventories moved in the opposite direction. Gasoline stocks fell by 3.7 million barrels to 249.5 million barrels, exceeding analyst expectations for a 2.6 million-barrel draw. Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, declined by 1.3 million barrels to 119.4 million barrels, also larger than the projected 0.7 million-barrel drop.
Gasoline demand rose by 949,000 bpd to 9.24 million bpd, while distillate demand increased by 367,000 bpd to 4.07 million bpd. Total product supplied, a broad measure of overall demand, jumped to 21.2 million bpd from 19.87 million bpd the prior week.
The demand increase has been linked to consumer concerns about continued price increases at the pump. National average gasoline prices ended last week at $3.32 a gallon, up 11% from the week prior and the highest level since September 2024, as the ongoing conflict with Iran has pushed oil prices to multi-year highs.
Refiners Respond to Margin Opportunity
Refinery activity picked up during the week, with crude runs rising by 328,000 bpd and utilization rates climbing 1.6 percentage points to 90.8%. The increase suggests domestic refiners are moving to capitalize on favorable processing margins created by elevated fuel prices.
Oil Prices Rise on the Data
Oil futures held gains following the EIA release. Global Brent crude futures were trading at $90.84 a barrel, up $3.04 on the session, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures rose $2.57 to $86.02 a barrel as of mid-morning Eastern time.
The rise in crude prices comes as investors continue to monitor the geopolitical situation for any signs of resolution. MyInvestAcademy previously reported on how the energy sector has outperformed the broader S&P 500 during periods of supply disruption, and how dividend stocks in the sector have outpaced technology equities in recent months.
