US crude output rose to 42-year high in March
US crude output climbed 13% from last year to 9.32 MMbpd in March, the fastest pace since 1973, according to a report by the American Petroleum Institute (API).
Production of natural gas liquids, a byproduct of gas drilling, climbed 9.1 % to 3.05 MMbpd, also a record for March. The combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has unlocked supplies from shale formations in the central US.
Drillers in the US cut the number of active rigs seeking oil last week to the fewest since 2010, according to Baker Hughes Inc. The number of rigs drilling for oil dropped to 760, a decline of 52% over 18 weeks.
Crude stockpiles rose 22% from last year to end March at 468.7 MMbbl, the highest for the month since 1930. Gasoline supplies climbed 4.9% from a year earlier to 231.8 MMbbl, the most for the month since 1988.
Refineries processed 15.9 MMbpd, a record for March. Output of distillate fuel, a category that includes heating oil and diesel, rose 3.1% to 4.9 MMbpd, also an all-time high for March. Production of gasoline slipped 1.6% from a year earlier to 9.38 MMbpd.
Higher Exports. Exports of refined products climbed 18% to 4.56 MMbpd last month, a record for March. Total imports of crude and fuels rose 5.9% from last year to 9.79 MMbpd in March, the highest level for the month in three years.
Total deliveries of petroleum products, a measure of consumption, climbed 3.4% from a year earlier to 19.2 MMbpd, the highest March total since 2011. Demand increased for gasoline, jet fuel and residual oil, while consumption of distillate fuel dropped.
Gasoline consumption rose 2.2% to 8.87 MMbpd as jet-fuel demand climbed 1.9% to 1.47 MMbpd. Demand for residual oil, used for commercial and industrial heating, electricity generation and ship propulsion, surged 16% to 250 Mbpd.
Consumption of distillate fuel slipped 1.7% to 3.98 MMbpd in March.
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