Commercial crude oil reserves in the United States rose more than expected last week, as did gasoline, surprising analysts, according to figures in the weekly report released on Wednesday by the U.S. News Agency. energy (EIA).
During the week ended October 1, crude inventories climbed 2.3 million barrels (Mb) and gasoline inventories by 3.3 Mb.
Average analyst forecasts were a slight increase of one million barrels of crude inventories and 400,000 barrels of gasoline.
Crude reserves stood at 420.9 million barrels and remain 7% below the five-year average at this time.
This is the second week in a row that crude oil reserves have surprised on the rise.
Oil prices, already down at the opening after their frantic run in recent sessions, lost 1.55% in London for North Sea Brent to $ 81.30 and 1.62% to $ 77.65 for the American WTI, around 3:10 p.m. GMT.
For Andy Lipow of Lipow Oil Associates, this increase in crude and gasoline reserves is not welcomed by the market because “the season of road trips is over.”
A positive point for activity nonetheless, which moderates this increase in inventories a little, production and imports increased, while exports fell.
Production continues to recover from the impact of Hurricane Ida in August in the Gulf of Mexico and Louisiana and amounts to 11.3 million barrels per day (mb / d), or 200,000 barrels more than the week before and 300,000 more than a year ago.
The refineries operated at 89.6% of their capacity, a rate even below normal.
Imports increased by 483,000 barrels per day to 7 mb / d. Exports, for their part, fell by nearly a third (-900,000 b / d) to 2.1 mb / d.
Global average consumption of petroleum products increased from last week, standing at 21.5 mbd against 20.4 mbd and 18.3 mbd a year ago.
“The market has grown a lot in recent weeks with the opening of economies and the increase in demand for energy,” Andy Lipow recalled. “But at the same time, with gas prices skyrocketing in Europe and Asia, there is concern that factories are closing because of this surge in energy prices, which would weaken demand,” he said. -he indicates.
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