U.S. commercial crude inventories have erased their entire 2026 build in just five weeks, with massive Strategic Petroleum Reserve releases masking what would otherwise be a far steeper supply drawdown.

At this pace, some commercial inventories could fall to minimum operating levels – thresholds below which storage systems can no longer function efficiently – as early as August

America's emergency oil reserve is shrinking at a record pace. Find out why the SPR buffer is disappearing as oil tops $100.