US Energy Information Administration (EIA) released an official weekly report on US inventories of oil and oil derivatives at 3:30 pm BST. The report was watched closely after last week's print showed a massive build in oil inventories. While API data is not a perfect predictor of EIA readings, last week's data stood in-line with one another. API report released yesterday in the evening hinted at a much bigger draw in US crude inventories than expected (-4.38 mb vs -1.6 mb expected) and investors were eager to see whether the EIA report will confirm API estimates once again.
Actual EIA report released today showed a slightly deeper drop in US oil inventories as well as much deeper declines in derivative inventories, especially distillate stockpiles. Report was bullish for oil and such was the reaction of the market.
EIA report on US oil inventories
- Oil inventories: -4.49 mb vs -1.6 mb expected (API: -4.38 mb)
- Gasoline inventories: -2.37 mb vs -1.3 mb expected (API: -1.58 mb)
- Distillate inventories: -3.18 mb vs -1.7 mb expected (API: -0.61 mb)
Brent (OIL) bounced off the support zone marked with 61.8% retracement of the drop launched in mid-September. Source: xStation5
