(Reuters) – U.S. crude, gasoline and distillate stockpiles fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Thursday, as demand jumped.
Crude inventories fell by 3.3 million barrels to 441.7 million barrels in the week ended May 22, the EIA said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 4.14 million-barrel draw.
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Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub fell by 2.79 million barrels in the week, the EIA said.
Oil futures held on to earlier gains, despite the smaller-than-expected draw in stocks. Global Brent crude futures were trading at $94.61 a barrel, up 32 cents, at 12:08 p.m. ET (1608 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were up $1.21, at $89.89 a barrel. Both benchmarks had slipped into negative territory earlier in the session following a report that the U.S. and Iran had reached a deal, but later rebounded.
Refinery crude runs rose by 652,000 barrels per day in the week, the EIA said, while refinery utilization rates fell by 2.9 percentage points to 94.5%.
U.S. gasoline stocks fell by 2.6 million barrels in the week to 211.6 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 2.41 million-barrel draw.
Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 2.1 million barrels in the week to 100.8 million barrels, versus expectations for a 1.02 million-barrel drop, the EIA data showed.
Net U.S. crude imports fell last week by 128,000 barrels per day, EIA said.
Reporting by Liz Hampton in Denver and Georgina McCartney in Houston; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama
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