⁍ In the United States, total stocks of crude oil and petroleum products have fallen in 10 out of the last 11 weeks.

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⁍ Total inventories are 11% above the five-year seasonal average, down from a surplus of 14% three months ago.

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⁍ Distillate stocks remain high as a result of the weakness of passenger aviation.

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– The oil market is on track to rebalance in 2021 thanks to falling prices, Reuters reports. According to the Energy Information Administration’s weekly report, US petroleum inventories have fallen by a total of 56 million barrels since July, partially reversing an earlier build-up of 224 million barrels since the start of the flu epidemic in March. Total petroleum inventories are 11% above the five-year seasonal average, down from a surplus of 14% three months ago, with most of the remaining surplus concentrated in crude and middle distillates such as diesel. Gasoline inventories are slightly below the five-year average for the first time since March, having been almost 13% above it in April, at the height of the lockdowns. US crude stocks excluding the strategic petroleum reserve are 12% above the five-year average, but the surplus has shrunk from almost 19% in July. The largest surplus is in distillate fuel oil, where stocks are 22% above average, down from 29% in early June. Distillate stocks remain high as a result of the weakness of passenger aviation, which has slashed jet fuel consumption, and led to surplus jet being down-blended into the dieselvirus.