US crude oil inventories edge down as refineries slow processing

The US Energy Information Administration published its Weekly Petroleum Status Report on 16 September, covering the week ending 11 September 2026.

The figures

• Commercial crude oil inventories (excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve): down 0.6 million barrels to 423.4 million barrels, 1% above the five-year average
• Refinery inputs: 17.3 million barrels a day, down 256,000 b/d from the previous week, at 96.8% capacity utilization
• Gasoline production: 9.6 million b/d
• Distillate production: 5.2 million b/d, down from the prior week
• Gasoline inventories: up 0.8 million barrels, 5% below the five-year average
• Distillate inventories: up 1.6 million barrels, 13% below the five-year average
• Total commercial petroleum inventories: up 2.6 million barrels for the week
• Crude oil imports: up 234,000 b/d to 7.1 million b/d; the four-week average of 6.7 million b/d is 7.5% above a year earlier

Over the past four weeks, total product supplied averaged 20.5 million barrels a day, down 0.6% year on year, with gasoline product supplied down 1.0% and distillate down 3.3%; jet fuel product supplied was up 4.4%.

Why it matters for currencies

Crude stock changes are a weekly gauge of US oil supply and demand that traders watch alongside the broader price backdrop. Brent crude has traded above $100 a barrel for most of September amid the conflict in the Middle East (report), a level that flows through to inflation readings from the UK to Japan and matters directly for oil-linked currencies such as the Canadian dollar (oil and the Canadian dollar) and the Norwegian krone. A modest 0.6-million-barrel draw, alongside falling refinery runs, is a small data point in that larger picture rather than a market-moving one on its own.

The next report is due 23 September. Live prices: USD/CAD.