- Prior was -2295K
- Gasoline +685K vs +1389K expected
- Distillates -5553K vs -2255K exp
There were some waves late yesterday when the API survey showed this:
- Crude -11100K (not a typo, 11m barrel draw)
- Gasoline +4700K
- Distillates -4800K
I tend to think that something strange is happening in the inventory-data space as Venezuelan crude goes from invisible to visible because there have been some huge weekly swings lately.
WTI crude oil is up 28-cents to $65.50 today. Eyes aren’t on inventories but Iran and a report today in the WSJ downplayed the possibility of a deal in meetings that are scheduled for Friday.
For background, the Weekly Petroleum Status Report, published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, is a closely watched indicator of petroleum supply and demand in the United States. Released every Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. ET, the report provides timely data on crude oil and petroleum product inventories, refinery operations, production, imports, and exports across the country and its five regional Petroleum Administration for Defense Districts. The report tracks commercial crude oil stocks excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, along with inventories of gasoline, distillate fuels like diesel and heating oil, and propane. These inventory levels influence energy prices and serve as key indicators of economic activity and consumer demand.
For the week ending January 9, 2026, U.S. crude stocks rose by 3.4 million barrels to 422.4 million barrels, the largest increase in two months and far exceeding expectations for a 2.2 million-barrel drawdown. The week ending January 16 saw crude inventories rise by 3.6 million barrels, again surpassing the expected 1.1 million-barrel build. Most recently, for the week ending January 23, crude stocks fell by 2.3 million barrels, defying market expectations for a 1.75 million-barrel increase. Throughout this period, crude inventories remained approximately 4 percent below the five-year seasonal average.
