U.S. crude oil sees decline in exports since February

Since reaching a record high in February 2020, U.S. crude oil exports have dropped in each month, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Petroleum Supply Monthly.

The drops are primarily related to the pandemic and stay-at-home orders that were in place. However, U.S. crude oil exports are still higher in the first half of the year than in the first half of 2019. Specifically, U.S. crude oil exports averaged 3.2 million b/d in the first half of 2020, up from 2.9 million b/d in the first half of 2019. U.S. crude exports to China drove part of this increase.

In the first half of the year, U.S. crude oil exports to China were the second largest after Canada. However, U.S. exports to Canada averaged 389,000 b/d of crude oil, which is down 19 percent from the same period in 2019. The Netherlands, South Korea, and the United Kingdom were the next largest destinations for U.S. crude oil exports. Exports to the Netherlands and the United Kingdom increased by 11 percent and 18 percent, respectively, compared to the previous year, while exports to South Korea fell by 27 percent.

Further, EIA estimates that global petroleum demand fell from 100.7 million barrels per day (b/d) in the first half of 2019 to 90.0 million b/d in the first half of 2020. U.S. crude oil imports averaged 6.2 million b/d in the first half of 2020, down 12 percent year over year.