Doha: The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced that total US crude oil inventories, comprising both commercial stockpiles and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, decreased by 131.6 million barrels to 723.1 million barrels last week. This marks the lowest level since 1984 and is attributed to lower refinery utilization rates, reduced crude exports, and increased imports.

According to Qatar News Agency, commercial crude oil inventories experienced a rise of 2 million barrels, reaching 411.7 million barrels for the week ending July 17. This increase contrasts with analysts' expectations, who had predicted a decline of approximately 1.1 million barrels. The data also revealed a drop in refinery crude oil inputs by 58,000 barrels per day, alongside a slight decrease in refinery utilization by 0.1 percentage point to 96.1%.

Additionally, US crude oil exports saw a reduction of about 368,000 barrels per day, while imports rose by 117,000 barrels per day, totaling 5.8 million barrels per day. Gasoline inventories noted an increase of 765,000 barrels for the week, amounting to 211.3 million barrels, contrary to analysts' forecasts of a 1.5-million-barrel decline.