US crude oil inventories show early signs of stabilisation

The EIA's Weekly Petroleum Status Report provided further fuel for a market rally based on a turn in US crude output. The report showed that total output decline by 20kb/d w/w to 9.384mb/d, the second decline in the past three weeks. 

Over the past four weeks, the cumulative decline has been 35kb/d, a sharp turnaround from the 139kb/d increase seen in the previous week period. While the weekly data readings may be somewhat choppy for a few weeks, the sharp falling away in shale oil output expected in May suggests that those readings are moving towards a sustained period of falls. 

The weekly data also showed a 1.3mb build in crude inventories to 483.7mb. For the first time this year, the build in crude inventories was less than the five-year average change. 

"We expect US crude oil inventories to begin to fall over the next month, due to refinery runs rising to their seasonal peaks." says Standard Chartered in a report