Refiners Aren't Acting Like Gasoline Demand is Weak, Even if Traders Are

Traders have been beating down the price of gasoline and gasoline crack spreads as well.  While refiners run at levels significantly higher than the same time in 2015 helping traders hold down gasoline prices and crack spreads.  With a huge inventory of crude, gasoline inventories seasonably high and a situation where WTI should supposedly stay low for a long time, why would refiners be pushing so hard, hurting their near term profits.

It seems there really can be only one answer.  Crude production is rapidly falling, and will continue to rapidly fall, and refiners know it.  Therefore they are sacrificing near term profits to create a hedge for the longer term by taking as much of what is currently ultra cheap crude, refining it and building stores of gasoline, distillates, etc. at a very low cost.