EIA's Weekly Petroleum Report -- Crude Oil Inventories With An Unremarkable Draw -- Yawn Hurricane Ida? What Hurricane? September 9, 2021

While we're waiting: Resident Biden is blaming high meat prices on the meat packers -- LOL -- everyone knows it was Covid-19 and, now the high energy prices due to Biden's energy policies, but that pales in comparison what might happen., At least one OPEC spokesperson is predicting " $200-oil" if ... and we move on ... talking his book ... LOL .... like "$200-oil" will ever happen ... link here. 

But how bad is it? China is now releasing state crude oil reserves for the first time. Link here. Is anyone paying attention? Or go direct to Reuters. 

I've always said the 21st century would be all about energy. This corroborates that sentiment: 

Saudi Aramco mulling a plan to lure foreign investors to one of the world's largest unconventional gas fields to fund a $110 billion project to diversify from crude oil. The field: the Jafurah site. Link here. 

Let's see how this goes: New York State has banned sale of gasoline-powered cars starting in 2035. Link here. California, I believe, has already done something similar. Don't know. Forgot. What folks don't realize: this is note fourteen years from now. Folks will have to start buying EVs in 2025 for a smooth transition ... that's only four years from now. Get out the popcorn ... a big bucket ... this will be fun to watch. What will we watch? Exodus of folks leaving the state and folks buying ICEs across the river in New Jersey. 

Europe: French one-year forward prices surged above $100 / MWh for the first time ever. Huge benchmark, apparently. I wouldn't know. Link here.

EIA weekly petroleum report:

• US crude oil inventories dropped by an unremarkable 1.5 million bbls; yawn
• US crude oil inventories now stand at 423.9 million bbls; 6% below the five-year average; yawn
• Hurricane Ida: refiners operating at 82% of their operable capacity
• US crude oil imports averaged 5.8 million bbls per day last week; decreased by 0.5 million bbls per day; yawn
• over the past four weeks, the average of 6.2 million bbls per day imports is 12.2% more than the same four-week period last year -- noteworthy, especially for Russia, now that Resident Biden killed the Keystone XL
• distillate fuel inventories decreased by 3.1 million bbls; are 12% below the five-year average
• total petroleum inventories decreased by 10 million bbls last week
• jet fuel supplies was up 65.3% compared to same four-week period last year

Hurricane Ida? What hurricane? Is it fair to say that? Prior to release of this data, WTI had fallen a few cents overnight and was trading just over $69. After the report came out: WTI up 41 cents, still below $70. Oil traders know / knew something the rest of us do not / did not know. 

By the way, look at the history of bad weather / storms / tornadoes in fly-over country (Minnesota, in this case). Link here. So much for global warming causing severe weather -- looks like just the opposite, which by the way, would be expected if one thinks about it.