U.S. crude inventories fall 3.061 million barrels as oil prices close mixed
Key Facts
U.S. crude oil inventories fell 3.061 million barrels in the week ended October 16, 2026, according to Trading Economics, with the U.S. Energy Information Administration's weekly report released on October 21. The draw exceeded market expectations of 0.8 million barrels cited by Trading Economics. Commercial crude inventories, excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, stood at 412.5 million barrels, according to official figures. Inventories had stood at 415.6 million barrels in the week ended October 9, before the latest decline. Across crude and products combined, the EIA said in its weekly summary: "Total commercial petroleum inventories decreased by 8.5 million barrels last week."
The draw included gasoline inventories, which fell by 3.0 million barrels, according to rounded official figures. Gasoline stocks stood at 205.3 million barrels at the end of the reporting week, according to the EIA. By contrast, distillate inventories rose to 104.3 million barrels from 102.6 million the previous week. The weekly increase in those stocks was 1.7 million barrels, moving in the opposite direction to gasoline. Crude inventories at Cushing also rose to 27.6 million barrels from 26.6 million, a rounded increase of 1.0 million barrels. In refining, crude inputs at U.S. refineries increased to 16,649 thousand barrels per day from 16,615 thousand, a rise of 34 thousand barrels per day. Despite the increase in inputs, refinery utilization fell to 93.4% from 93.5% the previous week.
The decline in crude inventories coincided with a drop in U.S. production to 13,269 thousand barrels per day, according to the EIA. The weekly decline was 410 thousand barrels per day from production of 13,679 thousand the previous week. On trade, net crude imports rose to 2,316 thousand barrels per day from 1,479 thousand, a weekly increase of 837 thousand barrels per day. U.S. crude exports fell to 3,442 thousand barrels per day during the reporting week. Exports had stood at 4,570 thousand barrels per day the previous week, marking a decline of 1,128 thousand barrels per day.
The U.S. developments come amid continuing risks to oil shipping in the Middle East. Investing.com cited Reuters, drawing on Kpler data, as reporting that 18 vessels were targeted in the two weeks preceding the October 21 report. The EIA said in its Short-Term Energy Outlook that risks to tanker transit in the region had increased the risk premium reflected in prices. The agency estimated that Middle East crude production shut-ins averaged 4.8 million barrels per day in September. Shut-in production had averaged 5.8 million barrels per day in August, before declining the following month as supply disruptions continued.
In trading on Wednesday, October 21, Brent futures settled at $108.82 a barrel, edging up 3 cents, or 0.03%, according to Reuters. Moving in the opposite direction, U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude closed down 67 cents, or 0.7%, at $97.15 a barrel. Brent's settlement followed the session on Tuesday, October 20, when it fell 76 cents, or 0.69%. The settlement price in that session was $108.79 a barrel, according to the news agency. Brent had touched $111.99 a barrel during Tuesday's trading, its highest level in 5 months, before ending the session lower.
In its October outlook, the EIA forecast that Brent spot prices would average $105 a barrel in the fourth quarter of 2026. That estimate is $14 a barrel above its September forecast. For inventory monitoring, the agency normally schedules its weekly petroleum report for release on Wednesdays. The report is usually released at 10:30 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time, subject to holiday schedule adjustments. The next edition of the Short-Term Energy Outlook, which includes the agency's energy market forecasts, is scheduled for November 10, 2026.