Domestic oil production bounced back to near pandemic-era highs in the final week of 2022, while demand plummeted following a run-up to the Christmas holiday.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said Thursday output for the period ended Dec. 30 climbed 100,000 b/d week/week to 12.1 million b/d. That put production within 100,000 b/d of the 2022 peak that exploration and production (E&P) companies first reached last summer, data from EIA’s latest Weekly Petroleum Status Report showed. The latest reading also easily surpassed the year earlier level of 11.8 million b/d.

Domestic production, while still well below the 13.1 million b/d record level reached in early 2020 prior to widespread coronavirus outbreaks, consistently held near or above 12.0 million b/d through...