US commercial crude inventories fell by 2.8 million barrels to 453.8 million barrels in the week ending June 13, according to EIA data, extending a three-week drawdown trend. Stocks now sit 3% below the five-year seasonal average, the largest deficit since October 2024.
Cushing, Oklahoma — the NYMEX delivery point — saw its second consecutive weekly draw, falling 1.2 million barrels to 34.2 million barrels. The Cushing draw is significant for WTI futures basis, as reduced available storage tightens the prompt-month spread. WTI in backwardation widened to $0.45/bbl for the front-month contract.
Refinery crude inputs rose to 17.2 million bbl/d, pushing utilization to 94.5% of operable capacity. Refiners are running hard to meet summer gasoline and diesel demand. Product supplied — the EIA's proxy for demand — averaged 20.8 million bbl/d over the four-week period, up 2.1% year-over-year.
Gasoline inventories declined 0.8 million barrels to 227 million barrels, matching the seasonal trend. Implied gasoline demand of 9.4 million bbl/d for the week was the highest since August 2025. The RBOB gasoline crack spread widened to $18.50/bbl, up from $15.80 at the end of May.
On the production side, US crude output held at 13.5 million bbl/d. Weekly data shows Permian Basin rig counts steady at 310, while the rig count in the Eagle Ford declined by 3 to 58. The US drilled-but-uncompleted (DUC) well count fell to 4,450, the lowest since 2018, suggesting limited capacity for rapid production growth.
Tightening inventories support prompt month backwardation. For physical crude buyers, the contango-to-backwardation flip at Cushing means storage economics have shifted. Secure H2 2026 crude requirements now. Monitor weekly EIA data for inventory trajectory vs. five-year averages.