U.S. crude inventories fall 3.1 million barrels as production and imports decline
Key Facts
U.S. commercial crude oil inventories fell 3.1 million barrels in the week ended October 16, 2026, remaining below their seasonal average, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said. Inventories, which exclude oil held in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, stood at 412.5 million barrels at the end of the week. They had totaled 415.6 million barrels in the week ended October 9, according to the agency's weekly tables. The latest draw was smaller than the previous week's decline, when commercial crude inventories fell by 8.6 million barrels. The agency said current inventories were 3% below the five-year average for this time of year.
The draw was concentrated on the U.S. Gulf Coast, where crude inventories fell 5.0 million barrels during the week, according to the EIA. Stocks in the region stood at 229.3 million barrels, compared with 234.4 million barrels the previous week. Nationwide, commercial crude inventories remained 10.3 million barrels, or 2.4%, below their year-earlier level. Stocks had totaled 422.8 million barrels in the week ended October 17, 2025, according to the agency's annual comparison. Separately from commercial inventories, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve declined 0.3 million barrels to 282.7 million barrels from 283.0 million the previous week.
The inventory draw accompanied declines in U.S. crude oil production and imports, alongside a drop in exports. Domestic production totaled 13,269 thousand barrels per day during the reporting week, according to the EIA. That represented a decline of 410 thousand barrels per day from the previous week's level of 13,679 thousand barrels per day. On the trade front, crude imports fell 291 thousand barrels per day to 5,758 thousand barrels per day from 6,049 thousand the previous week. Meanwhile, crude exports fell by 1,128 thousand barrels per day. Export volumes consequently totaled 3,442 thousand barrels per day, compared with 4,570 thousand the previous week, according to the same tables.
In fuel markets, gasoline inventories resumed their decline after rising the previous week, according to the EIA. They fell by 3.0 million barrels in the week ended October 16 to 205.3 million barrels. Inventories had risen to 208.3 million barrels in the week ended October 9 from 204.7 million barrels in the week ended October 2. That increase totaled 3.5 million barrels, before inventories shifted to a draw in the latest week. Distillate inventories, meanwhile, rose 1.7 million barrels to 104.3 million barrels, compared with 102.6 million the previous week.
The fuel inventory movements came as U.S. refinery crude throughput increased to 16.6 million barrels per day, according to the agency's weekly report. Refinery inputs rose by 34,000 barrels per day from the previous week, while refineries operated at 93.4% of capacity. Despite the weekly increase in distillate inventories, stocks remained 9% below the five-year average for this time of year. In its October outlook, the EIA had linked tightness in the diesel market to additional upward pressure on crude. It attributed this to "extreme tightness in diesel markets that is increasing demand for crude oil so refineries can meet diesel demand."
Petroleum products supplied averaged 21,122 thousand barrels per day over the four weeks through October 16, according to the EIA. That compared with an average of 20,474 thousand barrels per day during the corresponding period ended October 17, 2025. Products supplied thus recorded a year-on-year increase of 3.2% over the four-week period covered by the report. On its upcoming release calendar, the agency scheduled November 12, 2026, for publication of the inventory report for the week ended November 6. That report will be released at 12:00 noon U.S. Eastern Time, under a schedule adjusted for the Veterans Day holiday.