API: US Crude Oil Inventories Plummet Amid Ongoing SPR Draws

The American Petroleum Institute (API) reported that US crude oil inventories decreased by 2.6 million barrels in the week ending August 28, following a 4.2 million barrel increase in the previous week.

This decline marks a significant drop in commercial crude oil inventories excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), which have lost approximately 48 million barrels over the last twenty weeks.

Despite this decrease, US crude oil inventories remain up 3.1 million barrels for the year, with the SPR continuing to aid commercial inventories by drawing down stockpiles.

For the week ending August 28, another 3.1 million barrels were drawn from the SPR, bringing the total inventory held in the reserve to 286.6 million barrels, a level still shy of its maximum capacity by approximately 445 million barrels.