# U.S. crude oil imports vs exports | PIER20 benchmarks How much crude oil is the U.S. importing versus exporting? This page charts weekly U.S. crude oil imports against exports, week by week. It also charts the net crude imports (Crude oil imports minus Crude oil exports). A wider net crude imports means Crude oil imports grows faster than Crude oil exports, or falls slower. A narrower balance means the opposite. The balance is a flow in units per day. A weekly balance reading is the average daily difference for that week. It describes physical supply and demand direction, not a financial position. As of **31 July 2026**, the latest readings are Crude oil imports at **6198.00 Thousand Barrels per Day** and Crude oil exports at **3685.00 Thousand Barrels per Day**. The Crude oil imports line is up 4.0% over the past year and below its long-run median of 7810.00 Thousand Barrels per Day. ## Summary statistics (full history) | Series | First | Latest | Min | Max | |---|---|---|---|---| | Crude oil imports | 5654.00 | 6198.00 | 4278.00 | 11324.00 | | Crude oil exports | | 3685.00 | 10.00 | 6438.00 | ## Last 24 readings | Date | Crude oil imports | Crude oil exports | |---|---|---| | 20 Feb 2026 | 6659.00 | 4313.00 | | 27 Feb 2026 | 6324.00 | 3997.00 | | 6 Mar 2026 | 6422.00 | 3434.00 | | 13 Mar 2026 | 7194.00 | 4898.00 | | 20 Mar 2026 | 6464.00 | 3322.00 | | 27 Mar 2026 | 6454.00 | 3521.00 | | 3 Apr 2026 | 6324.00 | 4149.00 | | 10 Apr 2026 | 5291.00 | 5225.00 | | 17 Apr 2026 | 6078.00 | 4798.00 | | 24 Apr 2026 | 5750.00 | 6438.00 | | 1 May 2026 | 5477.00 | 4750.00 | | 8 May 2026 | 5901.00 | 5492.00 | | 15 May 2026 | 6016.00 | 5604.00 | | 22 May 2026 | 5212.00 | 4440.00 | | 29 May 2026 | 6397.00 | 5874.00 | | 5 Jun 2026 | 5888.00 | 4840.00 | | 12 Jun 2026 | 5134.00 | 4327.00 | | 19 Jun 2026 | 5570.00 | 4669.00 | | 26 Jun 2026 | 5279.00 | 4008.00 | | 3 Jul 2026 | 5629.00 | 3262.00 | | 10 Jul 2026 | 5689.00 | 3721.00 | | 17 Jul 2026 | 5806.00 | 3353.00 | | 24 Jul 2026 | 5683.00 | 3467.00 | | 31 Jul 2026 | 6198.00 | 3685.00 | ## How to read this benchmark **What a widening or narrowing balance means.** A positive net-crude-imports reading means the U.S. still relies on foreign crude barrels on net to balance the market; a negative reading means it is a net crude exporter that week. After the 2015 export-ban repeal, crude exports rose and net crude imports narrowed from multi-mb/d levels, but crude-only trade has remained a net-import account in almost every week of this sample. The rare net-export prints are exceptions, not a 2019. 20 regime. Because U.S. crude quality differs from what Gulf Coast refineries process, both flows run at the same time. Imports of heavy grades, exports of light shale barrels. So the balance, not either flow alone, is the crude trade signal. **Why Crude oil exports as the comparator.** Exports are the natural counterparty to imports in the same unit and the same weekly report: the difference is the crude trade balance. Comparing the pair answers whether the U.S. is a marginal buyer or seller of crude on world markets. The question that determines the price base's role (Brent-taker vs WTI-setter). **Why the balance is quoted per day.** Both flows are weekly totals from the WPSR. Each is divided by the number of days in the report week. That keeps weeks of different length comparable. The balance uses the same daily unit. A balance of +500 thousand barrels per day means the first flow ran 500 kb/d ahead of the second that week. **Limitations.** Weekly observations carry revisions. The WPSR revises earlier weeks when new data lands. Net crude imports is a physical flow. Prices also embed stocks, demand, policy, and the financial side of the market. Treat the chart as context for supply and demand conditions, not investment advice. ## How this benchmark is used **The post-embargo crude trade book.** The 2015 repeal of the crude export ban let light U.S. barrels leave while heavy imports continued, and the WTI-Brent spread still tracks how freely that two-way trade runs: when export capacity is constrained or the arbitrage closes, WTI can discount to Brent; when the export pipeline runs freely, the spread often narrows. This page is that arbitrage's physical crude bookend. Not the total-petroleum net-export milestone (see the petroleum trade balance page). ## Frequently asked questions **What is the current U.S. crude oil imports vs exports?** As of 31 July 2026, the latest readings are Crude oil imports at 6198.00 Thousand Barrels per Day and Crude oil exports at 3685.00 Thousand Barrels per Day. The Crude oil imports line is up 4.0% over the past year and below its long-run median of 7810.00 Thousand Barrels per Day. **How often is this benchmark updated?** This benchmark is built on weekly data. The page is refreshed when the source publishes new observations; the freshness block below the chart shows the exact data-through date and when PIER20 last fetched the file. **What data sources does this chart use?** The chart is built from Crude oil imports and Crude oil exports, sourced from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). **What does a negative net crude imports mean?** A negative reading means Crude oil exports exceeded Crude oil imports that week. The second flow ran ahead of the first. The balance is signed. Positive favors the first flow. Negative favors the second. The percentile cell ranks the latest balance against the full sample. **How is this different from the total petroleum trade balance?** This page covers crude oil only. The petroleum trade balance page adds refined products. Gasoline, distillate, jet fuel and the rest. To both sides. The product flows matter because the U.S. often exports more products than crude, and the product-inclusive balance is what flipped the overall petroleum account into persistent net-export territory around 2019. A milestone this crude-only series does not show. **How often is the data updated?** Weekly. The Weekly Petroleum Status Report publishes Thursday 1:00 p.m. ET with data through the prior Friday. The fetch retries the next day if a scheduled release is late. ## Methodology - Formula: net crude imports = Crude oil imports − Crude oil exports, in thousand barrels per day - Frequency: Weekly - Sources: Crude oil imports (WCRIMUS2) https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=WCRIMUS2&f=W; Crude oil exports (WCREXUS2) https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=WCREXUS2&f=W. Data via the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). - Data through: 31 July 2026 - Last refreshed: 11 Aug 2026 Full interactive chart: https://pier20.com/benchmarks/us-crude-imports-vs-exports Disclaimer: research software output, not investment advice.