WTI Draws Support as US Crude Stocks Keep Falling

Inventory data continues to underpin the bullish case for WTI. API estimates show U.S. crude stocks fell 300,000 barrels in the week ending September 4, following a steeper 2.6-million-barrel draw the prior week. Commercial inventories, excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, have now shed more than 48 million barrels over 21 weeks—a persistent drawdown pattern that's kept a floor under prices even as headline stocks are up 2.8 million barrels year-to-date.

The SPR's role in masking underlying tightness is critical here. With commercial draws running well ahead of reported reserve builds, WTI's move above $100-equivalent levels reflects genuine physical market tightness rather than pure speculative positioning, a distinction traders should weigh when assessing how durable this rally is.