American Oil Output Reaches a 31-Year Low : Energy: Domestic production in the first half of 1992 fell 3.3% to 7.24 million barrels per day from 7.49 million in 1991.

U.S. crude oil production fell to a 31-year low during the first half of 1992, the American Petroleum Institute said Wednesday, illustrating the scale of decline gripping the domestic industry.

In its June report, the oil industry trade group said domestic production slumped 3.3% to 7.24 million barrels per day from 7.49 million a year ago.

API also said that petroleum deliveries, a key measure of demand, rose 1.6% to 16.70 million barrels per day from January to June, the first significant six-month rise in three years.

The trade group said the drop in production was both in the continental United States and in Alaska. Output from other fields was insufficient to offset lower production from Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay, the country’s largest field.

Prudhoe Bay production, which began 10 years ago, was down nearly 20% from its peak of 1.6 million barrels per day.

Total U.S. production continued to fall in June, with average crude output down 2.3% to 7.16 million barrels per day from 7.32 million a year ago, API said.

API said first-half deliveries rose because of a partial recovery from low levels a year ago rather than any extraordinary strength this year.

Total imports of crude oil and petroleum products were virtually unchanged in the first six months of the year, averaging 7.5 million barrels per day, or 0.4% more than a year earlier.

“The illusion of stable imports was possible in part because an inventory build in the first half of last year that pushed imports up, coupled with a small drawdown in this year’s first half,” API said.

Imports accounted for 44.9% of domestic deliveries in the period, it said.

Total inventories stood at 1.05 billion barrels at the end of June, down 1.8% from a year ago but up 1.3% from the end of May.

Gasoline deliveries rose 1.4%, while distillate fuel sales rose 3.6% on higher transport use and stronger heating oil sales.

Kerosene jet fuel deliveries fell 1.3% in the period but showed a 3.2% gain in the first quarter.

API noted that retail prices rose an average of 5 cents per gallon between May and June, making prices 12 cents higher than in March.