Oil Vaults

The two oil storage sites traders watch: Cushing, Oklahoma (WTI delivery hub) and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (salt caverns in Texas and Louisiana). Updated every Wednesday when the EIA publishes.

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Week ending June 5, 2026

Next EIA release: Wed Jun 17

Cushing Drops Below 22M As Tank Bottoms Loom

Cushing fell to 21.6M bbl this week, down 0.8M and now sitting 11.6M below the five-year average. That hub is the delivery point for WTI, and stocks here are thinning faster than the headline commercial draw suggests. Tank bottoms aren't far off; the closer Cushing runs to minimum operating levels, the more sensitive front-month spreads get. The broader picture rhymes. Commercial crude fell 7.2M to 426.5M, a full 26.6M under the five-year norm. The SPR shed another 7.9M to 349.2M, now 52.9M lighter than a year ago and offering thinner cover against a supply shock. Products offer no comfort. Distillate at 102.1M sits 13.3M below average, gasoline 12.9M below heading into driving season. Every vault we track is drawn down. The market is tight, not loose.