US: EIA Crude Oil Stocks decrease by 1.7 million barrels, WTI trades below $66

Eren Sengezer FXStreet

Crude Oil Stocks Change in the US was -1.7 million barrels in the week ending May 21, the weekly report published by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) revealed on Wednesday. Analysts' estimate was for a decrease of 1.05 million barrels.

Market reaction

With the initial reaction, the barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) recovered modestly from daily lows and was last seen losing 0.3% on the day at $65.80.

Additional takeaways

"US crude oil refinery inputs averaged 15.2 million barrels per day during the week ending May 21, 2021, which was 123,000 barrels per day more than the previous week’s average."

"US crude oil imports averaged 6.3 million barrels per day last week, down by 138,000 thousand barrels per day from the previous week."

"Total products supplied over the last four-week period averaged 19.1 million barrels a day, up by 18.1% from the same period last year."

Author

Eren Sengezer

FXStreet

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

GBP/USD drops to multi-week lows below 1.3300

GBP/USD sets aside Friday’s uptick and breaches below the 1.3300 yardstcik on Monday to hit new multi-week troughs. Falling crude oil prices following a pause in the Middle East conflict in combination with the recent soft reading in UK inflation appear to play against any BoE tightening ahead of the bank’s event later in the week.

EUR/USD meets support near 1.1370

EUR/USD fades the initial bull run past 1.1400 the figure, deflating toward the 1.1370 zone on Monday. That said, the pair reverses two daily drops in a row on the back of the irresolute price action in the US Dollar, at the time when investors continue to closely follow developments from the Middle East conflict. Next on tap is the release of the US Consumer Confidence gauge by the Conference Board.

Gold struggles to extend gains beyond $4,100

Spot Gold gapped higher at the beginning of the new week, as a pause in Middle East hostilities underpinned the mood and weighed on the US Dollar (USD). The XAU/USD pair traded as high as $4,116.20 during Asian trading hours, following a pause in strikes between Iran and the United States (US).

Ethereum: BitMine buys back over 6 million shares, scoops 10K ETH

Ethereum treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies increased its share buybacks last week while scooping extra tokens into its ETH stash. The Las Vegas-based firm bought back 6.1 million shares of its common stock last week, following a 5.5 million share purchase the prior week.

Neither Hormuz nor Oil at $120: Why Japanese bond yields are the real market threat

While geopolitical headlines continually send traders rushing to the Oil charts, history shows that the biggest market moves often begin when liquidity disappears, not when crude spikes. Rising bond yields, particularly in Japan and Switzerland, threaten to trigger the unwinding of one of the largest leveraged trades in financial history.

US Dollar mid-year outlook: Exceptional currency, exceptional risks?

The US Dollar enters the second half of 2026 in a markedly different position from a year ago. The King currency has recovered, reflecting persistent US inflation, changing expectations for Fed policy, geopolitical tensions and renewed demand for defensive assets.