FX.co ★ US crude oil inventories climb to record high

The period of cheap oil prices affected every participant in the global oil market, from suppliers and producers to sellers and buyers. All of them had felt an adverse impact of extremely low oil prices. It seemed like only buyers were incredibly satisfied with what was happening. Back then, oil traded at a steep discount and buyers loved special deals. Among such lucky winners were China and the United States. These two stocked up on oil to the very top. According to the Energy Information Administration (EIA), US total commercial crude oil inventories are currently reaching 540 million barrels. The last time this happened was back in 1982. At the same time, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve holds around 660 million barrels. This is the highest level of oil inventories the US has had on hand since 1972 when the petroleum reserve was started.

Depositories around the world are still brimming with oil. The decision of OPEC+ to extend oil supply cuts is still supporting prices, but it does not particularly affect demand. Notably, overloaded oil storage facilities became one of the main reasons for the collapse in oil prices in April. Therefore, the reports presented by the EIA deserve special attention when choosing trading solutions.