US Daily Oil Summary: Crude Draw Overshadowed by Huge Products Build

Crude stocks drew more than expected driven by a large correction in exports back above 5mb/d, a drop in production from the record high levels and despite an increase in exports.

• However, gasoline inventories in the US saw their highest weekly rise in over 30 years, up 10.9m bbl to 237m bbl, according to EIA data.
• US gasoline pump prices are averaging $3.08/gal Jan. 04, according to GasBuddy, a fall of 4.2 cents/gal on last week’s average.
• The US-led force in the Red Sea has shot down 19 drones and missiles launched by Iranian-backed Houthis in less than a month, but there is no sign of the attacks abating, according to the commander of the US Navy forces in the Middle East, cited by Bloomberg.
• USD: A mixture of stronger than expected US jobs data and general sentiment saw US yields rise once again on Thursday. Despite this, the USD index remained close to unchanged with currency markets highlighted by a further extension of Japanese Yen weakness.
• Initial jobless claims surprisingly fell to a seasonally adjusted 202k (cons 216k) in the week to Dec 30 after a slightly upward revised 220k (initial 218k).
• S&P Global US services PMI was revised a tenth higher to 51.4 (initial 51.3) in the final December print, from 50.8 in Nov to cement its highest reading since July. The US S&P Global Composite PMI was 50.9 vs 50.7 prior.