Heating oil futures for delivery at New York Harbor eased to $4.05 per gallon from a six-week high of $4.16, as a modest buildup in inventories temporarily offset concerns over a tight global market. EIA data showed that US distillate fuel stocks inched up by 200,000 barrels in the first week of May, defying expectations for a 2.8 million barrel draw. In contrast, gasoline inventories fell by 4.1 million barrels, suggesting that refineries shifted capacity toward diesel and jet fuel in response to shortages at major transportation hubs worldwide.
Despite the slight relief, supplies remained constrained, as increasingly confrontational rhetoric between the US and Iran reinforced expectations that energy exports from the Middle East will stay disrupted. Exports of refined distillate products from the region have been virtually halted since the war began in March, straining refineries and driving heating oil futures to a record high of $4.60 per gallon that same month.
