US becomes net exporter of oil for first time in 75 years

According to a weekly data published by the US Energy Information Agency (EIA), the country’s crude oil and refined product exports exceeded imports last week, making the country a net exporter for the first time in decades.

For the week through November 30, the US crude oil imports averaged 7.2 million barrels/day, while refined product imports totaled 1.6 million barrels/day. On the other hand, the US sold overseas a record 3.2 million barrels/day of crude oil and more than 5.8 million barrels/day of refined products, meaning that the country has become a net exporter of 211,000 barrels/day of crude oil and refined products.

The latest data marked the first time that has happened in EIA’s records dating back to 1974 while the American Petroleum Institute’s data showed that the US had been a net oil importer since 1949.

The shift from an importer to a net exporter came on the back of the shale boom, which has led an unprecedented surge in the country’s domestic production over the past decade.