NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. crude stocks rose more than expected, while gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.
Crude inventories rose by 1.7 million barrels to 437 million barrels in the week ended March 14, the EIA said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 512,000-barrel rise.
Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub fell by 1 million barrels, the EIA said.
Refinery crude runs fell by 45,000 barrels per day, the EIA said.
Refinery utilization rates rose by 0.4 percentage points in the week.
U.S. gasoline stocks fell by about 530,000 barrels in the week to 240.6 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 2.2 million-barrel draw.
Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 2.8 million barrels in the week to 114.8 million barrels, versus expectations for a 300,000-barrel drop, the EIA data showed.
Net U.S. crude imports fell by 1.44 million barrels per day, EIA said.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly)
