EIA Petroleum Status Report

The EIA Petroleum Status Report is published every Wednesday by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Energy. It details the level of crude-oil reserves that the U.S. holds, as well as the amount of crude and related products it produces, both domestically and abroad.

The EIA Petroleum Status Report details the existing U.S. stocks of crude oil, as well as the inventory levels of refined petroleum products such as gasoline, heating oil, and diesel fuel. The main highlights section of the report breaks down crude-oil inputs to the refineries, the capacity utilization of those refineries, and the amount of new gasoline and distillate production.

Typically, the report also includes a table with the net imports, or total U.S. imports minus exports, of both crude and petroleum products. Also, the report details the per-gallon prices of West Texas Intermediate crude, regular unleaded gasoline, No. 2 heating oil, and propane.

The price of crude is determined by supply and demand technicals, as is the case with other commodities. When reserves drop, prices will rise and vice versa. Therefore, the EIA Petroleum Status Report is a reflection of current crude-oil price trends. The writers of the report do not try to interpret the fundamental drivers of those trends.

Investment analysts and futures traders will study the report, and use its data to make projections regarding energy prices and production levels. Similarly, some analysts who work for energy companies will use the news to glean data from the report to help inform their long-term strategy and business decisions. The media also frequently uses the EIA report in reporting about the energy industry and prices which directly affect consumers, such as heating oil and gasoline.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration makes the status report available from its website. Users may review the report using online tools which include analysis and projections by topics and data sorted by category. The full report is available in PDF format and as an exportable Microsoft Excel and comma-separated-value (CSV) spreadsheet for further analysis.

• The EIA Petroleum Status Report highlights section provides production data for most line items on a trailing four-week basis. Likewise, the year-ago and previous-week comparisons also use trailing four-week figures. 
• The basis for production data come from the closing prices for the specific day indicated.
• The Tables section of the report offers weekly supply estimates, Data within this section can be further broken down by geographic region, as prices in New England can differ meaningfully from those in Alaska, or the Lower Atlantic states.
• Further down in the report is a table with spot prices for oil-based products which trade less frequently, including jet fuel, kerosene, and ultra-low sulfur diesel.
• Lastly, the report provides monthly prices for gasoline and on-highway diesel fuel for the U.S., as well as by geographic region.