MARKETWIRE ALERTS

MARKETWIRE ALERTS 

MarketWire Afternoon News for February 12th:

Updated at 5:00 PM ET 

HEADLINES:

— EIA to Publish WPSR on February 19 Due to Holiday

— PNW Sub-Octane Regular Basis Jumps over 5cts on Tight Supplies

— BTS: U.S. Carriers Had 74.8M Passengers in November

— EIA: 19 U.S. States Raise Gasoline Tax in 2026

— CEC: California Gasoline Stocks Climb 170,000 Bbl on Week

— EIA: US NatGas Storage Reports 249 Bcf Weekly Withdrawal

— CEC: California Diesel Stocks Jump 349,000 Bbl on Week

— IEA Cuts 2026 Oil Demand Growth to 850,000 Bpd

NEWS:

EIA to Publish WPSR on February 19 Due to Holiday

The Energy Information Administration will delay by a day its Weekly Petroleum Status Report (WPSR) and two other reports due to next week’s President’s Day holiday, the agency announced Thursday (2/12).

The WPSR, “This Week in Petroleum” and “Heating Oil and Propane Update” reports – typically published on a Wednesday – will be published instead on Thursday, February 19, because of the holiday on February 16, the EIA stated.

PNW Sub-Octane Regular Basis Jumps over 5cts on Tight Supplies

Basis for prompt Pacific Northwest sub-octane regular surged by 7cts on Thursday (2/12) to a 32.5cts premium over March NYMEX RBOB futures, driven by limited supplies and firm demand. 

A bid for PNW sub-octane regular was heard at a 32cts premium to the same benchmark. The basis was pegged at a 25.5cts premium to March NYMEX RBOB futures contract in the previous trading session.

West Coast (PADD 5) gasoline inventories slightly rose by 400,000 bbl to 30.4 million bbl in the week ending February 6, after three consecutive weekly withdrawals, according to most recent data from the Energy Information Administration. 

Refining utilization in PADD 5 dropped to 82.4% in the same period from 83.2% the prior week, the EIA data showed. 

BTS: U.S. Carriers Had 74.8M Passengers in November

U.S. airlines carried 74.8 million systemwide passengers in November 2025, representing a 2.9% decline compared to the same month last year, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics reported Thursday (2/12).

The total includes 65.4 million domestic and 9.4 million international passengers traveling on U.S. airline flights throughout the month.

The agency noted that seasonally adjusted enplanements fell 1.4% from October and 4.3% from record highs of June 2024. These figures reflect a cooling in demand after the peak summer travel season.

Separately, International Air Traffic Association data for November, released last month, showed a 1.8% drop year-on-year in U.S. air passenger volumes versus a global increase of 5.7%.

EIA: 19 U.S. States Raise Gasoline Tax in 2026

Nineteen U.S. states have raised gasoline taxes this year, with Michigan’s hike of 20.8cts gallon and Washington’s markup of 6.2cts being the notable increases, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a survey published Thursday (2/12).

Of the 26 states with changes to gasoline taxes, seven dropped their rates while the remainder 17 upped them by as much as 5cts gallon each, the EIA said.

With the changes, the average state gasoline tax was now 33.5cts gallon, slightly higher than a year ago, the EIA noted.

California retained its status as the state with the highest tax on gasoline, at 70.9cts gallon, due to a combination of factors that include excise taxes and other fees and a gasoline blend that requires more costly processing.

Alaska had the lowest gasoline tariff at 9cts gallon.

The EIA also listed state diesel taxes, which it said were independent of those at the federal level. California had the highest state diesel tariff at 87.3cts gallon while Alaska had the lowest at 9cts. The average state diesel tax was 35.9cts gallon.

CEC: California Gasoline Stocks Climb 170,000 Bbl on Week

California gasoline inventories rose in the week ending February 6, supported by builds in Southern California, according to the California Energy Commission’s Weekly Fuels Report released Thursday (2/12).
Statewide gasoline stocks, including CARB reformulated, non-California, and blending components, climbed by 170,000 bbl to 11.264 million bbl, standing 5% higher than last year.
Northern California gasoline inventories slipped by 8,000 bbl to 5.917 million bbl, but remained 21% above year-ago levels.
Northern CARB reformulated gasoline stocks increased by 179,000 bbl to 4.062 million bbl. Northern non-California gasoline stocks fell by 193,000 bbl to 134,000 bbl, while Northern blending components edged down by 6,000 bbl to 1.715 million bbl.Southern California gasoline inventories rose by 177,000 bbl to 5.346 million bbl, though still 8% below last year.

Southern CARB reformulated gasoline stocks declined by 153,000 bbl to 1.915 million bbl. Southern non-California gasoline stocks grew by 143,000 bbl to 628,000 bbl, while

Southern blending components increased by 187,000 bbl to 2.803 million bbl.
Statewide gasoline production fell by 824,000 bbl to 4.861 million bbl, down 10% from 2025.

Southern California gasoline production declined by 407,000 bbl to 3.217 million bbl, down 12% annually.

Southern CARB reformulated gasoline production slipped by 361,000 bbl to 2.894 million bbl, while Southern non-California gasoline production dropped by 46,000 bbl to 323,000 bbl.
Northern California gasoline production fell by 417,000 bbl to 1.644 million bbl, but remained 6% below last year.
Northern CARB reformulated gasoline production declined by 464,000 bbl to 1.528 million bbl, while Northern non-California gasoline production rose by 47,000 bbl to 116,000 bbl.

EIA: US NatGas Storage Reports 249 Bcf Weekly Withdrawal

Energy Information Administration data released midmorning Thursday (2/12) show a 249 billion cubic feet withdrawal into U.S. natural gas storage to 2.214 trillion cubic feet in the week ended February 6.
Natural gas in U.S. storage is 4.2% lower than last year and 5.5% below the five-year average of 2.344 Tcf.
Regionally, EIA reports the East registered a 64 Bcf withdrawal to 438 Bcf, 7.6% less than a year ago and 13.4% lower than the five-year average.
Natural gas in storage in the Midwest decreased 74 Bcf week-on-week to 510 Bcf, a 9.9% deficit compared to the same week a year ago and 16.5% lower than the five-year average.
Mountain region natural gas in storage decreased 4 Bcf, up 7.7% year-on-year to 37.5% above the five-year average.
South Central storage fell 107 Bcf to 784 Bcf, 8.1% less than in the same week last year and 10.2% below the five-year average.

CEC: California Diesel Stocks Jump 349,000 Bbl on Week

California diesel inventories rose in the week ending February 6, led by stock builds in Northern California, the California Energy Commission’s Weekly Fuels Report released Thursday (2/12) showed.

Statewide CARB diesel and other diesel fuel stocks climbed by 349,000 bbl to 3.012 million bbl, standing 1.8% higher than the previous year.

Northern CARB diesel stocks rose by 414,000 bbl to 1.285 million week-over-week. Northern other diesel fuel stocks were unchanged at 428,000 bbl.

Southern California diesel inventories, meanwhile, declined by 65,000 bbl to 1.299 million bbl last week, 17% down from the same week last year.

Southern CARB diesel stocks fell by 201,000 bbl to 609,000 bbl on a weekly basis, while Southern other diesel fuel stocks fell by 136,000 bbl to 690,000 bbl in the same period.

Statewide diesel production climbed by 89,000 bbl to 1.637 million bbl on week, standing 34% higher from the same week last year.

Southern California diesel output slipped by 1,000 bbl on the week to at 1.077 million bbl, remaining 42% lower than a year ago.

Last week, Southern CARB diesel production eased by 181,000 bbl to 548,000 bbl. Southern other diesel fuel production, meanwhile, rose by 18,000 bbl to 529,000 bbl.

During the profiled week, Northern California diesel production rose by 90,000 bbl to 560,000 bbl, while standing 21% above year-ago levels.

Northern CARB diesel production climbed by 279,000 bbl to 560,000 bbl in the week, while Northern other diesel fuel outage plunged to a negative 44,000 bbl from a prior 145,000 bbl.

IEA Cuts 2026 Oil Demand Growth to 850,000 Bpd

The International Energy Agency (IEA) on Thursday (2/12) lowered its global oil demand growth forecast for 2026, saying higher crude prices and economic uncertainty will likely weigh on consumption.

The Paris-based agency now expects demand to rise by 850,000 bpd this year, a decrease from the 930,000 bpd growth projected in its January report. High prices in early January weighed on growth prospects despite continued demand from non-OECD economies and the petrochemical sector, the IEA observed.

World oil supply fell by 1.2 million bpd in January to 106.6 million bpd due to severe winter weather and outages. Disruptions in North America and Kazakhstan, along with export constraints in Russia and Venezuela, drove the sharp monthly decline in output.

The IEA maintained its 2026 supply growth forecast at 2.4 million bpd, assuming OPEC+ members continue their current production agreements.

With total supply for the year projected at 108.6 million bpd against an implied demand of 104.9 million bpd, annual surplus will likely remain unchanged at the 3.7 million calculated in January, the IEA’s latest report implied.

Global oil inventories rose by 37 million bbl in December, bringing total builds for 2025 to 477 million bbl – the highest annual increase since the 2020 pandemic that decimated demand. Preliminary data for January suggest stocks surged by another 49 million bbl as supply continues to outpace demand.

Refinery activity dropped from December’s record high of 86.3 million bpd to 85.7 million bpd in January due to seasonal maintenance and lower margins. The agency predicts refinery runs will increase by 790,000 bpd this year, led primarily by growth in non-OECD regions.

Benchmark oil prices rose steadily in January, with North Sea Dated crude climbing $10 bbl over the month. Geopolitical tensions and North American snowstorms sparked the bullish reversal, though the IEA still warns of a looming global glut.