US Petroleum Inventory Data
DoE reported crude stocks fell 100k in the latest week vs mkt f/cast for -1.3 mn draw. Gasoline inventory fell by a hefty 3.5 mn, much greater than the f/cast 350k build, while distillates rose by 2.4 mn, slightly above expectations.
Crude imports rose by 199k. The DoE pegged implied overall oil usage down 2.4% y/y with gasoline coming off the same amount, but distillates up 4.0% y/y.
Overall the report has seen a bout of short covering with NYMEX spiking above the Usd 123 handle from Usd 121.20 just ahead of the release, but running in fund selling withy demand bears disappointed.