EIA crude oil inventories rose slightly more than expected, and U.S. oil fell slightly by $0.5 in the short term

On Thursday (December 29) during the New York session, at 00:00 Beijing time, data released by the U.
S.
EIA showed that the increase in commercial crude oil inventories in the United States excluding strategic reserves in the week ended December 23 exceeded expectations, gasoline inventories decreased sharply more than expected, and refined oil inventories slightly exceeded expectations
.
After the EIA data, the price of U.
S.
crude oil fell slightly by $
0.
5 in the short term.

EIA crude oil inventories grew slightly more than expected

Specific data showed that the EIA crude oil inventory changes in the United States for the week ended December 23 actually increased by 718,000 barrels, an expected decrease of 152 barrels, and a decrease of 5.
894 million barrels
in the previous month.

In addition, EIA gasoline inventories in the United States for the week ended December 23 actually decreased by 3.
105 million barrels, an expected increase of 520,000 barrels, and increased by 2.
53 million barrels in the previous month; EIA refined oil inventories in the United States increased by 282,000 barrels in the week ended December 23, compared with an expected decrease of 2.
05 million barrels; and the previous value decreased by 242,000 barrels
.

U.
S.
crude exports fell by 895,000 b/d to 3.
465 million b/d
in the week of Dec.
23, according to the EIA report.
U.
S.
domestic crude oil production fell by 100,000 barrels per day to 12.
000 million b/d
in the week of Dec.
23.

U.
S.
Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) inventories fell by 3.
496 million barrels, or 0.
92%,
to 375.
1 million barrels in the week of Dec.
23, according to the EIA report.
The four-week average supply of U.
S.
crude products was 20.
832 million b/d, down 2.
77%
from a year earlier.

The EIA report showed that the United States imported 6.
252 million b/d of commercial crude oil, excluding strategic reserves, in the week of Dec.
23, up 433,000 b/d
from the previous week.
Commercial crude inventories, excluding strategic reserves, rose by 718,000 barrels, or 0.
17%, to 419 million barrels
.

The 5-minute chart of US crude oil prices is displayed

In addition, U.
S.
crude inventories fell more than expected, but refined oil inventories increased, indicating sluggish fuel demand, putting some pressure
on oil prices.
According to the latest data from the American Crude Oil Institute (API), in the week ended December 23, API crude inventories decreased by 1.
3 million barrels to 415.
8 million barrels, down 3.
069 million barrels in the previous month and 1.
575 million barrels expected, gasoline inventories increased by 510,000 barrels vs 4.
511 million barrels in the previous month and 100,000 barrels expected, refined oil inventories increased by 390,000 barrels from 828,000 barrels in the previous month and decreased by 2.
05 million barrels expected, and Cushing crude oil inventories decreased by 338,000 barrels from the previous value by 842,000 barrels
.

China's easing of policies has led to a surge in infections in the short term, which is not conducive to oil prices

The Chinese government recently lifted strict coronavirus restrictions to maximize the reopening of the economy
.
China's motivation to accelerate the reopening of its economy is to ease supply chain disruptions and speed up international trade
.
However, this has led to a surge in coronavirus infections and restrictions imposed by other countries on Chinese tourists, reversing previous optimism surrounding increased demand for Chinese crude and rekindling concerns about reduced demand in the world's largest consumer of commodities, with crude bears dominating the market
.

Recently, U.
S.
health officials mentioned that starting Jan.
5, all passengers aged 2 and older from China will be required to take a coronavirus test
two days before departure.
Previously, countries such as India, Japan, Italy and other countries announced requirements
for coronavirus testing for tourists from China.

U.
S.
winter storms led to lower demand for crude oil, which was negative for oil prices

Winter storms in the United States caused a large number of flight cancellations, and jet fuel demand was hit
.
In recent days, rare winter storms have hit U.
S.
air traffic hard, canceling tens of thousands of flights so far, most of them by Southwest Airlines
.
According to data from the US flight tracking website, as of the morning of December 28, local time, Southwest Airlines has canceled 2,507 flights, and Southwest Airlines has also canceled 2,348 flights on the 29th, bringing the total number of cancelled flights in two days to nearly 5,000
.

Demand expectations fell, with U.
S.
natural gas futures down more than 12 percent
.
U.
S.
natural gas futures fell more than 12 percent on Wednesday, updating their lowest since March, as warmer weather is expected over the next two weeks than previously expected, which could lead to lower
heating demand.
Data provider Refinitiv expects 327 heating days (HDDs) in 48 contiguous U.
S.
states over the next two weeks, down from an estimate of 352 on Tuesday
.
At this time of year, the normal is 438.