Demand for petroleum products in the United States increased by 4.9 percent in November compared to the same month in 2012, reaching an average of 19.4 million barrels per day, according to figures released by the American Petroleum Institute (API).
John Felmy, API chief economist, said that U.S demand for gasoline went up 5.4 percent year-on-year in November, to an average of just over 8.9 million barrels a day. Demand also rose for distillate deliveries, to a total of nearly four million barrels per day — an increase of 3.7 percent compared to November 2012.
Meanwhile, demand for jet fuel rose seven percent and demand for "other oils" went up by 10.3 percent, the API said. By contrast, demand for residual fuel plummeted to 243,000 barrels per day, a 24.9 percent fall, bringing demand to the lowest level recorded in November.
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Overall, U.S. gross refinery input increased by 3.2 percent over the 12 months leading up to the end of November, as most refineries completed their turnaround and maintenance. Last month, total refinery production reached 15.9 million barrels per day. Exports of petroleum products also went up year-on-year in November, rising six percent to 3.6 million barrels per day.
API also stated that the refinery capacity utilization rate came in at an average of 89.3 percent, which was 2.9 percentage points higher than in October and 0.7 percentage points higher than November 2012.
