U.S. Crude Inventories Fall 3.2 Million Barrels in Latest EIA Report

U.S. commercial crude oil inventories fell by 3.186 million barrels in the week ended October 2, bringing stocks to 424.134 million barrels, according to the latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The figure excludes crude held in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and marks a 0.7% weekly decline from 427.320 million barrels.

The national draw was concentrated in a few regions rather than spread evenly across the country. Gulf Coast inventories dropped sharply, while stocks in the Midwest increased and the Cushing, Oklahoma, storage hub also posted a build. Commercial crude inventories nevertheless remained 0.9% above their level a year earlier, underscoring that the weekly decline does not by itself indicate an unusually tight nationwide stock position.

Gulf Coast accounts for most of the crude draw

The EIA’s Weekly Petroleum Status Report showed Gulf Coast crude inventories falling 3.898 million barrels to 243.599 million barrels from 247.497 million a week earlier. That regional decline was larger than the national commercial draw, meaning increases elsewhere offset part of the Gulf Coast move.

Midwest crude stocks rose 1.872 million barrels to 106.981 million. Within that region, Cushing inventories increased 444,000 barrels to 24.745 million barrels from 24.301 million. The Cushing build is notable because the Oklahoma hub is a major physical delivery and storage center for U.S. crude markets, but it moved in the opposite direction from the headline national figure.

Stocks fell by 766,000 barrels on the West Coast, 250,000 barrels on the East Coast and 144,000 barrels in the Rocky Mountain region. Alaska crude in transit increased by 342,000 barrels. Taken together, those regional changes produced the 3.186 million-barrel decline in commercial crude inventories reported for the week.

The comparison with last year also adds perspective. Commercial crude stocks stood at 420.261 million barrels in the comparable week of 2025, leaving the latest level about 3.9 million barrels higher. The Gulf Coast, by contrast, was slightly below its year-earlier level, while Midwest stocks were more than 6% higher.

Refinery inputs rise as crude exports jump

Several parts of the weekly petroleum balance shifted at the same time. U.S. crude oil inputs to refineries rose by 223,000 barrels per day to 16.480 million barrels per day. Refinery utilization edged up to 92.7% of operable capacity from 92.5% the prior week, indicating that refiners processed somewhat more crude even as commercial inventories declined.

Gross crude imports increased sharply, rising by 1.142 million barrels per day to 6.840 million barrels per day. Crude exports climbed by an even larger 1.195 million barrels per day to 4.765 million barrels per day. Because both flows rose, net crude imports changed much less, slipping by 53,000 barrels per day to 2.075 million barrels per day.

Domestic crude production was estimated at 13.979 million barrels per day, up 24,000 barrels per day from the previous week. Lower 48 production was essentially steady at 13.490 million barrels per day, while Alaska production increased to 489,000 barrels per day.

Those figures help describe the week’s supply balance, but they should not be treated as a simple arithmetic explanation for the inventory draw. EIA’s weekly balance sheet also includes an adjustment item, which was negative 589,000 barrels per day in the latest week compared with negative 238,000 barrels per day a week earlier. EIA notes that some weekly data are estimated and that differences are calculated from unrounded values, so one week’s stock change can reflect several moving components at once.

Gasoline builds while distillate stocks remain low

The rest of the petroleum inventory report was mixed. Total motor gasoline inventories increased by 382,000 barrels to 204.744 million barrels. Even after that build, gasoline stocks were 6.5% below the comparable week a year ago. Distillate fuel oil inventories were almost unchanged, slipping by 42,000 barrels to 105.138 million barrels, but they remained 13.5% below the year-earlier level.

Kerosene-type jet fuel inventories fell 1.108 million barrels to 42.504 million, while propane and propylene stocks declined 1.801 million barrels to 107.846 million. Propane and propylene remained 7.3% above a year earlier despite the weekly draw.

Total petroleum stocks excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell 6.913 million barrels to 1.2374 billion barrels. The SPR itself declined by 784,000 barrels to 282.983 million barrels. Including the reserve, total crude oil stocks fell 3.970 million barrels to 707.117 million barrels.

On the demand side, the EIA’s measure of total products supplied averaged 20.396 million barrels per day for the latest week, down from 21.500 million barrels per day a week earlier. The less volatile four-week average was 21.050 million barrels per day, 0.7% above the comparable period last year. Four-week gasoline product supplied was down 0.3% from a year earlier, distillate was down 1.6%, and jet fuel was up 6.0%.

The report therefore presents a more nuanced picture than the headline crude draw alone. Commercial crude inventories fell, led by the Gulf Coast, while Cushing and the broader Midwest built stocks. Refinery activity rose modestly, gross imports and exports both increased sharply, and refined-product inventories moved in different directions. The next Weekly Petroleum Status Report is scheduled for Wednesday, October 14, when investors will get another reading on whether the latest crude draw is sustained or reversed.