US crude oil inventories down by 0.7% for week ending Aug. 1

US commercial crude oil inventories decreased by 0.7% during the week ending Aug. 1, according to data released by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) late Wednesday.

Inventories fell by around 3 million barrels to 423.7 million barrels, contrasting with a forecasted increase of 200,000 barrels.

Strategic petroleum reserves, which are excluded from commercial crude stocks, increased by 200,000 barrels to 403 million barrels, the data revealed.

Over the same period, gasoline inventories decreased by approximately 1.3 million barrels to 227.1 million barrels.

– Crude production falls

EIA data showed that US crude oil production decreased by 30,000 barrels per day (bpd) to about 13.28 million bpd during the week ending Aug. 1.

US crude oil imports fell by 174,000 bpd to approximately 5.96 million bpd, while exports rose by 620,000 million bpd to around 3.32 million bpd over the same period.

In the Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO) released on July 8, the EIA projected that crude oil output in the country would average 13.37 million bpd in 2025.

By Handan Kazanci

Anadolu Agency

energy@aa.com.tr