US crude oil production falls to lowest level since end of November 2014

Oil prices have gained by more than 1% this morning. Brent has risen to $49 per barrel and WTI to just shy of $46 per barrel. Russia's military intervention in the Syrian conflict has increased the geopolitical risks, which is giving tailwind to the prices. 

According to the US Department of Energy, US crude oil stocks grew by 4 million barrels last week, notes Commerzbank. Crude oil stocks at Cushing, on the other hand, fell by 1 million barrels. Both figures corresponded largely to the data reported by the API the day before. The inventory build was due to a combination of lower crude oil processing and higher imports. 

Contrary to the usual seasonal pattern, US gasoline stocks rose by an unexpectedly steep 3.2 million barrels. US crude oil production declined for the seventh time in the past eight weeks and now finds itself at its lowest level since the end of November 2014. It now exceeds the year-on-year figure by only 259,000 barrels per day.

In the first half of the year, crude oil production surpassed the previous year's level by more than 1 million barrels per day. If this trend continues, US crude oil production will be down year-on-year within four weeks at the latest, says Commerzbank.