US Refined-Product Exports Hit Weekly Record 8.7 Million Barrels Per Day as Europe Absorbs American Fuel
American refiners set an all-time weekly export record in July, with Hormuz-driven demand from Europe and Asia pulling US inventories tighter as autumn approaches.
US refined-product exports reached a record 8.7 million barrels per day in the week ending July 9 (2026-07-09), lifting total oil and fuel shipments including crude to 12 million barrels per day, according to Saxo Bank's Ole S. Hansen, who cited the EIA's weekly petroleum status report. Jet fuel product supplied domestically ran 4.1% above the same four-week period a year earlier in that same report. RBOB gasoline front-month was trading at $3.53 per gallon and ICE Brent crude front-month at $102.71 per barrel on September 23 (2026-09-23).6
The export surge traces directly to February 28 (2026-02-28), when the Strait of Hormuz closed and severed supply routes that Europe and Asia had long relied on for distillates and jet fuel. Weekly EIA estimates show US jet fuel production climbed to record highs following that closure, driven by prices that roughly doubled in the aftermath. Europe and Asia, which previously imported much of their jet fuel supply through the Gulf, turned to American volumes to fill the gap.4
Monthly EIA data give the fullest picture of what followed. Total US petroleum exports hit 13.6 million barrels per day in April (2026-04), 15% above the previous record set in March (2026-03). Crude oil led the way at 5.6 million barrels per day, 21% above its prior peak from December 2023. Distillate fuel oil exports reached 1.6 million barrels per day, the highest since July 2017. Propane crossed 2.0 million barrels per day for the first time in monthly EIA records.5
Europe's pull on US fuel is not just about Hormuz. Petroplus Holdings, described by analysts as Europe's largest independent refiner and wholesaler of petroleum products, shut three of its five refineries after banks froze more than $2 billion of the company's credit lines. Output from the combined 667,000 barrels per day of closed capacity ceased entirely, while the company's UK and German facilities ran at roughly half their combined capacity.1
That structural capacity loss has pushed European buyers deeper into Atlantic Basin supply. EIA data show Europe took 48.4% of all US distillate exports in a recent reporting period, up from 43.5% a year earlier. Sander Cohen, analyst at energy consultancy ESAI Inc., said the Petroplus closures would likely push prices higher as more buyers competed for American fuel.1
The export pace has drawn down domestic US inventories. Gasoline stocks stood at 211.6 million barrels for the week ending May 22 (2026-05-22), the EIA reported. OilPrice.com noted in early June (2026-06-08) that the drawdown rate had reached a record pace even if absolute levels had not hit historic lows — a distinction that matters for how quickly the market could tighten further into peak autumn demand.3
By the following week's data, reported July 15 (2026-07-15), US crude inventories fell a further 1.7 million barrels. Hansen noted crude exports came in at 3.7 million barrels per day, below the one-year average of 4.2 million barrels per day and well short of the record 6.4 million barrels per day reached in May (2026-05). The crude pullback against ongoing product export strength reflects where refinery crack economics are pointing: toward processing barrels into fuel rather than shipping crude outright.7
Domestic demand has not softened enough to offset the export draw. Jet fuel product supplied ran 4.1% above year-ago levels in the July 9 (2026-07-09) data, then decelerated to 2.3% above year-ago levels in the July 15 (2026-07-15) report. Whether that deceleration reflects a genuine demand shift or seasonal noise remains unclear from the available data.7,6
Standard Chartered commodity analysts cautioned that positive signals on Hormuz have been met with heavy algorithmic selling, given contradictory messaging from Washington and Tehran, with the US maintaining aggressive rhetoric even as Iran signalled openness to talks. If Hormuz access remains impaired into winter, European distillate markets stay exposed. If it reopens sooner than the forward curve implies, the arbitrage that has kept US export economics attractive narrows fast — and American refiners running hard for export would find the margin calculus shifting beneath them.2