Gasoline Prices Drop Below Last Year’s Level as Crude Supply Falls

Total gasoline inventories increased by 200,000 barrels last week and remain in the middle of the five-year average range. Total motor gasoline supplied (the EIA’s measure of consumption) averaged more than 9 million barrels a day for the past four weeks, down by about 0.7% over the same period a year ago.

Distillate inventories rose by 2.5 million barrels last week and remain near the lower limit of the average range. Distillate product supplied averaged 3.8 million barrels a day over the past four weeks, down by 5.5% when compared with the same period last year. Distillate production averaged 5.2 million barrels a day last week, about 100,000 barrels above the prior week’s production.

Tuesday evening, the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported that crude inventories fell by 4.2 million barrels in the week ending July 11, together with a drop of 1.6 million barrels in gasoline supplies and an increase of 1.3 million barrels in distillate supplies. For the same period, analysts estimated a decrease of 2.6 million barrels in crude inventories, an increase of 600,000 barrels in gasoline inventories and a rise of 2 million barrels in distillate inventories.

Before the EIA report, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was trading up at around $100.65 a barrel, about 0.7% above Tuesday’s closing price of $99.96. The WTI price rose sharply higher to around $101.15 a barrel shortly after the report was released.

For the past week, crude imports averaged more than 7.4 million barrels a day, up by 142,000 barrels a day over the previous week. Refineries were running at 93.8% of capacity, with daily input of more than 16.6 million barrels a day, up 374,000 barrels a day compared with the previous week’s average.

Refiners boosted throughput rates by about 300,000 barrels a day this past week, and that could explain part of the huge drop in the crude oil inventory. What it does not explain is why refiners are boosting runs while gasoline prices are falling. One possible answer is that refineries have increased their runs of barely refined products with an eye toward increasing exports.

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According to AAA, the current national average pump price per gallon of regular gasoline is $3.598, down from $3.645 a week ago and from $3.662 a month ago. Last year a gallon of regular cost $3.635 on average in the United States.

Here is a look at how share prices at three U.S. producers are reacting to this latest report.

Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) traded up about 1.1%, at $103.48 in a 52-week range of $84.79 to $104.61.

Chevron Corp. (NYSE: CVX) also traded up about 1.1%, at $130.66 in a 52-week range of $109.27 to $133.57.

Continental Resources Inc. (NYSE: CLR) traded up about 2.1%, at $149.60 in a 52-week range of $89.72 to $159.24. Continental is the largest producer in the Bakken Shale play.

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