WASHINGTON (MNI) – The following is the text of the summary of the
American Petroleum Institute’s monthly report on domestic petroleum
deliveries, gasoline deliveries and crude oil production for July
released Friday:
July’s total petroleum demand, as measured by domestic deliveries,
was up by 3.8 percent from last year. Demand for gasoline slowed down in
July compared with last year. July’s gasoline deliveries were the lowest
for any July since 2003 with the exception of July 2008. At the
refineries, motor gasoline production volumes increased on a
year-to-year and month-to-month basis.
Total motor gasoline production in July was at 9.4 million barrels
per day. This was slightly higher than June’s production level by 0.8
percent and higher by 2.2 percent from July 2009.
In contrast to gasoline, distillate deliveries in July were up by
9.8 percent compared with July 2009, mostly driven by increased demand
of low sulfur distillates and ultra low sulfur distillates. Low sulfur
distillate deliveries – the fuel primarily used for highway
transportation – increased in July this year compared with last year.
Distillate production was at 4.3 million barrels per day, 8.5 percent
above July 2009 levels and down by 2.4 percent above prior month levels.
With the exception of July 2008 when distillate production stood at
4.5 million barrels per day, July 2010 distillate production level was
the highest for any July. The average utilization rate at U.S.
refineries in July jumped for the third month in a row to 87.4 percent.
Inputs to crude distillation units, up for the sixth month in a row,
were higher than June 2010 by 1.1 percent and higher than July 2009 by
3.9 percent.
Domestic crude oil production in July 2010 increased marginally
from June of this year to 5.4 million barrels a day but fell by 0.4
percent from July 2009. With the exception of 2009, this July’s
production level was the highest for any July since 2004. Natural gas
liquids (NGLs) production in July 2010 was at 2.01 million barrels per
day, up by 4.9 percent from last July, and up by 0.8 percent from June
of this year.
U.S. drilling activity continued to improve in July from prior
month according to Baker Hughes Inc. North Dakota overtook Oklahoma
during the last week of July as the third-most active state in drilling
for oil and natural gas, according to the BHI weekly data.
Crude imports, at 9.6 million barrels per day, continued to move up
on a year-to-year basis, for the second month in a row in July, by 5.6
percent. However product imports were at 2.1 million barrels per day,
23.8 percent lower than prior year’s July.
Crude inventories increased in July from a month ago and from a
year ago. With the exception of residual fuels and “other oils”, all
refined products showed a build up from a month ago as well in July.
Crude inventories increased after two months of consecutive declines in
May and June of this year.
At 354.2 million barrels, crude inventories in July 2010 were 2.5
percent above July 2009’s inventory levels and 0.4 percent higher than
June 2010’s inventory levels. July 2010 was also the highest crude stock
level for any July since 1990.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **
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