US commercial crude oil inventories decreased by 3.8 million barrels to 408.4 mmbbls in the week ended June 26, the Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report on Wednesday.
Crude inventories are now about 7% below the five-year average for this time of year, the EIA said.
The decline is less than Macquarie's forecast of a 5.5-mmbbl draw for the week ending June 26.
Crude oil futures were little changed in after-hours trading on Tuesday as markets weighed signs of potential progress in US-Iran peace negotiations against expectations of a looming supply glut later in the year.Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude futures slipped 0.9% to $70.10 per barrel, while Brent futures eased 0.3% to $72.92/bbl.Soojin Kim, research analyst at MUFG, said oil prices are likely to remain under downward pressure as Gulf supply recovers and the risk premium continues to fade, though uncertainty could keep volatility elevated.More ships are transiting the Strait of Hormuz after traffic slowed over the weekend after two ships were hit, with vessel tracking data showing an increase in crossings, although they remain below pre-war levels.Warren Patterson, head of Commodities Strategy at ING, said that oil flows averaged about 7 million barrels per day over the past week, compared to pre-war flows of 20 million b/d.However, Patterson said they did not need to see Strait of Hormuz oil flows return to 20 million b/d for the Persian Gulf oil supply to fully recover.Kpler analysts also said that tanker markets are adjusting to the partial reopening of the Strait, with Middle East Gulf VLCC rates easing as inbound ballasters return to the region, reducing tightness following a period of disruption.Iran has reiterated its determination to control maritime traffic through the Hormuz, with Ebrahim Azizi, head of Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, reportedly saying that the strategic waterway is an "inseparable" part of Iran's national sovereignty.Kim said that Iran reiterated its intention to oversee traffic through the Strait, highlighting that differences over the energy chokepoint's future governance remain unresolved.Meanwhile, US envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner are in Doha as part of ongoing peace negotiations between the US and Iran and as the two sides try to temper tensions after tit-for-tat attacks over the weekend.Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that the Doha meeting "is going to be perhaps important, perhaps not," adding that they were "going to find out."However, Iranian officials denied that talks between the two sides were scheduled for this week, noting that an Iranian technical delegation's visit to Qatar this week was unrelated to US officials' visit to the country.Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaril Baghaei said Iran has not yet entered the phase of final agreement negotiations and will not do so until the US begins implementing five key provisions of the MoU.On the demand front, the Energy Information Administration earlier in June projected that global crude demand will fall by 1.1 million b/d in 2026, while the International Energy Agency slashed its demand outlook to about 1.1 million b/d.
EnCore Energy (EU) secured a 20-year renewal of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission license for its Dewey Burdock uranium project, completing the federal permitting process, the company said Tuesday.The license renewal followed the completion of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's Safety Evaluation Report, which marked the final regulatory step. Earlier, the agency issued an Environmental Assessment, a Finding of No Significant Impact and a Programmatic Agreement, EnCore said.Separately, the Bureau of Land Management cleared the company to begin building infrastructure on federally managed lands within the Dewey Burdock project, allowing construction activities to proceed on those lands.The project still requires approvals from South Dakota before commercial operations can begin, even though enCore has now obtained every required federal permit, the company said.EnCore has already started the state permitting process, which represents the final regulatory stage before the in-situ recovery uranium project can enter full operational status, the company said.
US feedstock demand for biomass-based diesel production grew 4%, or 130 million pounds, in April to 3.43 billion pounds, up 4.5% over 2024, according to the Energy Information Administration's monthly data released Tuesday.Waste feeds, such as used cooking oil and tallow, led usage in April.Distiller corn oil usage reached a record amount of 477 million pounds in April.Soybean oil usage totaled 1.22 billion pounds in April, down 5% compared with the previous month, reaching a 38% slate in April.Biodiesel production at 686 million pounds raised April's capacity to 79%, up from 72% the previous month.Renewable diesel production at 537 million pounds jumped with the help of higher margins of 7% in April. RD utilization rates jumped to 73%, up from 71% the prior month.EIA reported that the composition of soybean oil production in April was 56% BD and 44% RD, compared with a 54/46 split in March.Zander Capozzola, principal consultant at Argus Media Consulting Services, said the lower futures markets seem well overdone given the risk of renewed conflict in the Middle East."SBO futures have shed 13% since the start of the month as signs of easing tensions in the Strait weighed across energy markets, overshadowing ongoing geopolitical risks. Market sentiment has also been undermined by expectations of bearish US acreage data due later this week," the analyst said."Yet for US feedstock markets, the resumption of imports presents a bearish fundamental counterweight," Capozzola added.