US crude oil inventories at 4.657 million barrels, up 1.14% in a week

US commercial crude inventories rose by 4.657 million barrels in the week ended November 6 to 414.417 million barrels, a 1.14% weekly increase that reverses the prior week's 865,000-barrel draw, according to the EIA's weekly petroleum status report. Gasoline and distillate stocks also built, while the Strategic Petroleum Reserve declined, and Cushing inventories increased alongside the national commercial total after rising 280,000 barrels the week before. Stockpiles remain about 4% below the five-year average for this time of year, indicating the build is partly a rebound from an unusually low base rather than a surge to comfortable levels. The across-the-board build in commercial crude, gasoline and distillates signals softer near-term demand or heavier refining output, a combination that typically weighs on crude benchmarks. Watch next week's EIA print for whether the build continues at Cushing and the Gulf Coast, and whether SPR draws persist as the agency manages reserves.