Ethanol Stocks Down 2.8%; Production Up

NEW YORK (DTN) -- Domestic ethanol supplies tumbled last week from a five-week high, with total inventories down 400,000 barrels (bbl), or 2.8%, to 16.0 million bbl during the week-ended April 11, according to data issued Wednesday, April 16, by U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The deficit for total ethanol stocks versus a year earlier rose to 1.6 million bbl, or 8.9%, compared with a 1.4 million bbl year-over-year stock deficit posted the prior week. Inventories rose in the East Coast while drawn down or remaining flat in other regions.

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The EIA data showed PADD 1 East Coast supplies increased 200,000 bbl to a nine-week high of 5.4 million bbl while PADD 4 Rocky Mountain stocks held steady at 300,000 bbl.

Other regions posted stock draws with PADD 2 Midwest supplies down 200,000 bbl to 6.2 million bbl. PADD 3 Gulf Coast supplies declined 400,000 bbl to 2.4 million bbl and PADD 5 West Coast inventory was drawn down 100,000 bbl to 1.7 million bbl.

EIA also showed ethanol production at U.S. plants rebounded last week, rising 43,000 barrels per day (bpd), or 4.8%, to 939,000 bpd, the highest level since Dec. 6, 2013, when output was 944,000 bpd. Domestic output for last week was up 106,000 bpd, or 12.7%, from a year ago. Four-week average production at 910,000 bpd was up 10.4% from a year earlier.

Refiner and blender inputs, a proxy for demand, dropped 4,000 bpd, or 0.5%, to 848,000 bpd while down 5,000 bpd or 0.6% from a year earlier. The four-week average input rate was up 1.4% from a year earlier.

EIA reported no ethanol imports last week after 38,000 bpd of the product were imported into the country a week prior.

(BM/AG)

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