U.S. Crude Oil Stockpiles Fall More Than Expected

By Anthony Harrup

U.S. crude oil inventories fell for a third consecutive week as production and imports declined, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Commercial crude oil stocks excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve decreased by 3.1 million barrels to 412.5 million barrels in the week ended Oct. 16 and were about 3% below the five-year average for the time of year, the EIA said. Crude stocks were expected to be down by 300,000 barrels, according to a Wall Street Journal survey of analysts.

Oil stored in the SPR fell by 300,000 barrels to 282.7 million barrels. Oil stocks at Cushing, Okla., the Nymex delivery hub, increased by 987,000 barrels to 27.6 million barrels.

The EIA estimated U.S. crude oil production at 13.3 million barrels a day, down by 410,000 barrels a day from the week before. Production continued to be affected by offshore shut-ins due to Hurricane Isaias, which made landfall Oct. 9. Lost Gulf production had been largely restored by Wednesday of last week, according to the Marine Minerals Administration.

Crude oil imports fell by 291,000 barrels a day last week to 5.8 million barrels a day, and exports fell by 1.1 million barrels a day to 3.4 million barrels a day.

Refineries ran at 93.4% of capacity, down from 93.5% the week before, while crude input to refineries was up by 34,000 barrels a day at 16.6 million barrels a day. Refinery runs were forecast to have edged up by one-tenth of a percentage point.

Gasoline inventories fell by 3 million barrels to 205.3 million barrels, and were 5% below the five-year average, the EIA said. Gasoline demand rose by 575,000 barrels a day to 9 million barrels a day. Gasoline stocks were seen unchanged in the Journal survey.

Distillate fuel stocks increased by 1.7 million barrels to 104.3 million barrels compared with expectations of a 1.3-million-barrel draw, and were 9% below the five-year average for the time of year. Distillate demand fell by 591,000 barrels a day to 3.7 million barrels a day.

 
Change in U.S. oil inventories for the week ended Oct. 16: 
 
                   Crude       Gasoline      Distillates        Refinery Use 
EIA data:          -3.1          -3.0            1.7                -0.1 
Forecast:          -0.3          unch           -1.3                 0.1 
 

Note: Numbers in millions of barrels, with the exception of refinery use, which is in percentage points.

Write to Anthony Harrup at anthony.harrup@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 21, 2026 11:16 ET (15:16 GMT)