A surprise drop in crude oil held in storage across the U.S. and at the Cushing Hub in Oklahoma was reported this week by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Nationally, there was a loss of 3.7 million barrels of crude oil from Jully 12 to July 19, the most recent reporting period. The EIA said the drop went from 440.2 million barrels on the 12th of the month to 436.5 million barrels a week later. The U.S. has also seen a drop of 8.8 million barrels since July 5.
The Cushing hub’s total in stored crude oil fell 1.7 million barrels in the most recent reporting period of July 12 to July 19. As of the 19th of July, Cushing’s total was 31 million barrels compared to the 32.7 million barrels recorded the previous week. Cushing has seen a drop of 2.5 million barrels since July 5 when it held 33.5 million barrels.
