Crude oil inventories fell by 5.1 million barrels in the week ending April 21 to 460.9 million barrels, far exceeding expectations of analysts polled by Reuters for a 1.5 million-barrel drop in inventories.
The administration said oil inventories at the delivery center in Cushing, Oklahoma, rose by 319,000 barrels last week.
And it stated that the consumption of crude by US refineries decreased by 11 thousand barrels per day last week. Refinery operating rates rose 0.3 percentage point in the week.
The administration stated that gasoline stocks fell by 2.4 million barrels to 221.1 million barrels, compared to analysts’ expectations for a decrease of 900 thousand barrels.
Data from the Energy Information Administration showed that distillate stocks, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by about 600,000 barrels last week to 111.5 million, while it was expected to drop by 800,000 barrels.
The administration said net US imports of crude oil fell last week by 166,000 barrels per day.
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