US Daily Oil Summary: Gasoline Demand Up on Week

US retail gasoline demand saw a rise of 3.1% for the week ending March 17 (Sun-Sat) according to GasBuddy data. GasBuddy models U.S. gasoline demand at 8.633m bpd.

• US oil production is set to rise in April to 9.769m b/d across the major shale plays, according to the EIA Drilling Productivity Report.
• BP’s 435kbpd Whiting, Indiana, refinery returned to normal operations after the plant wide power outage on 1 February, a BP spokesperson said on Monday.
• TotalEnergies has been preparing the restart of the 76kbpd FCC at the 238kbpd Port Arthur, Texas, refinery as of 15 March.
• Valero restarted the 265kbpd CDU and 172kbpd VDU at the 335kbpd Port Arthur, Texas, refinery on 15 March.
• Exxon Mobil reported hydroformer unit 3 was shut after a furnace fire at its 564,440 b/d Baytown, Texas refinery on March 18,
• US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said March 18 that the SPR is on track to "be at or exceeding" levels it would have been without a series of sales to ease spiking oil prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
• The dollar index has been creeping higher across the US session, in line with the shift higher for US yields. G10 ranges have remained fairly contained ahead of significant event risk this week, however, emerging market currencies have been more negatively impacted to start the week.
• Wires reporting comments from the White House after the first phone call between US President Joe Biden and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in their first direct conversation since 15 February.