U.S. crude oil supplies fell by 5.1 million barrels for the week ending in May 20th, causing the largest inventory draw since December 2015, according to American Petroleum Institute's (API) weekly report.
Ahead of the data, the anticipated reduction in supply caused crude prices to jump over US$49 a barrel. It was expected that the draw would be two million barrels or less.
Zero Hedge pointed out a seasonal trend for large draws in May. Last year, crude oil experienced a draw of 16.4 million barrels around the same time of the current month.
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Oil supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma dropped by 189,000 barrels - the first in four weeks.
Distillate supplies decreased by almost three million barrels.
Gasoline inventories, on the other hand, rose dramatically with a build of 3.6 million barrels instead of a draw of 1.5 million.
Related: Oil Prices Spike Ahead Of Inventory Reports
Last week, the amount of crude oil at hand dropped by 1.1 million barrels, less than the three million barrel dip forecasted by S&P Global Platts.
During the week ending on May 13th, crude oil supplies fell by 1.14 million barrels, while Cushing increased its stock by 508,000 barrels.
The API, however, does not have the last work on this week's inventory situation. Recent weeks have seen the Energy Information Agency (EIA) come out with completely contradictory data, so all eyes will be on the official report tomorrow afternoon.
By James Burgess for Oilprice.com
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