DOE stats back up marketer talk that suggests gasoline demand is subpar in most states. For the first time in thirteen months, U.S. gasoline demand slipped below 9 million b/d. There is a sense that before winter is over, there will be several more weeks beneath this number.DOE's calculations implied demand at 8.964 million b/d, the lowest figure since February 24, 2006. Year-on-year comparisons are misleading, with most recent four weeks up 1.1 % from same period in 2007, when ice storms and other inclement weather temporarily dampened offtake.From an inventory perspective, the two most comfortably supplied markets are the left and right coasts. West Coast gasoline stocks rose to 35.5 million bbl, which represents East Coast gasoline stocks increased by 3.9 million bbl, up nearly 4 mil-lion/bbl from last year.
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