OIL: EIA Oil Stocks Preview: Further US Crude Draws Expected

EIA Oil Inventory Preview: The EIA weekly petroleum status report will be released at 10:30ET (15:30BST) today.

• Crude inventories are expected to draw by 2.52mbbls, US gasoline to draw by 1.93mbbl and distillates to draw 0.78mbbl for the week ending Aug 23, according to a Bloomberg survey. US crude inventories resumed the declining trend last week driven by a larger than expected increase in refinery runs. Refinery utilisation unexpectedly rose to the highest since mid July at 92.3% although is expected to rise by just 0.02% this week.
• US production increased back to 13.4mb/d with shale producers recently edging H2 output forecasts higher due to US efficiency gains. The upcoming refinery maintenance season and end to the peak summer demand could help to reverse the recent stocks decline in the coming weeks. 
• Gasoline stocks last week fell as expected with an increase in implied demand offsetting higher production and a drop in exports. Four week implied demand however edged slightly lower on the week in line with the seasonal trend. US retail gasoline demand saw a rise of 1.9% for the week ending August 24 to reach 9.15mb/d, according to GasBuddy. OPIS modelled implied demand at less than 9mb/d for last week amid a weak finish for the US summer driving season.
• Distillates stocks last week drew more than expected, especially in the PADD 3 Gulf Coast region, driven largely by an increase in exports to offset the increase in production. Four week average implied demand continues to disappoint, falling back below the previous seasonal five year range.
• The API data yesterday showed a crude draw of 3.4mbbl, a Cushing draw of 0.49mbbl, gasoline draw of 1.86mbbl and distillates draw of 1.41mbbl.