(Reuters) – U.S. crude oil output fell about 2% in May from a record in April, while exports hit a record high for the second-consecutive month, according to data published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Friday.
Crude oil production in May averaged 13.71 million barrels per day, whereas exports rose to 5.73 million bpd from the prior record of 5.59 million bpd, the data showed. U.S. oil companies have ramped up exports sharply since the beginning of the Iran war, taking advantage of a global supply shortfall created by disruptions to vessel movements through the Strait of Hormuz.
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However, higher oil prices have hit consumption. Total U.S. demand for crude oil and petroleum products fell more than 3.5% in May to about 20.07 million bpd, the lowest since March 2025, the EIA data showed.
U.S. demand for distillate fuel, which primarily includes diesel, fell to 3.57 million bpd in May, the lowest since June 2020, the data showed.
Diesel is one of the products that have registered the sharpest price surges due to the Iran war, as the Middle East is a major supplier of both the fuel and the type of crude oil best suited for its production.
Meanwhile, U.S. gross natural gas production eased to 134.0 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in May from 135.3 bcfd in April and a record 136.0 bcfd in December 2025.
In top gas-producing states, output in May declined 0.8% to 38.5 bcfd in Texas, but rose 0.9% to 21.2 bcfd in Pennsylvania, the EIA said.
That compares with monthly all-time highs of 38.8 bcfd in April in Texas and 21.9 bcfd in December 2021 in Pennsylvania.
Reporting by Shariq Khan and Scott DiSavino in New York; Editing by Kirsten Donovan
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