“The gap between U.S. petroleum production and demand continued to trend higher last month,” John Felmy, chief economist at the API in Washington, said in the report.

Demand for distillate fuel, which includes diesel and heating oil, slid 2.6 percent from a year earlier to 3.63 million. Jet fuel consumption declined 2.9 percent to 1.38 million. Deliveries of residual oil, used for commercial and industrial heating, electricity generation and ship propulsion, dropped 45 percent to 205,000 barrels a day.

Domestic crude production has averaged above 8 million barrels a day since February, according to the API. Output has surged as a combination of horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has unlocked supplies trapped in shale formations, including the Bakken in North Dakota and the Eagle Ford in Texas.

Total petroleum imports, including crude oil and fuels, slumped 16 percent from a year earlier to 8.4 million barrels a day, the lowest level since February 1995.

For the third quarter, crude imports averaged 7.54 million barrels a day, down 6.1 percent from a year earlier. Total petroleum imports dropped 11 percent to 9.03 million. Crude production averaged 8.65 million barrels a day, up 14 percent.

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