U.S. crude oil and gasoline inventories rose unexpectedly last week, while distillate stockpiles fell, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday.

Crude inventories rose by 3.8 million barrels to 419 million barrels in the week ending June 27, the EIA said, compared with analysts’ expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.8 million-barrel draw.

Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub fell by 1.5 million barrels.

U.S. oil prices pared earlier gains following the unexpected build in inventories, but were still trading in positive territory. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were trading at $65.75 a barrel, up 34 cents by 10:39 a.m. EDT (1439 GMT), while global benchmark Brent crude futures were up 44 cents at $67.56 a barrel.

Refinery crude runs rose by 118,000 barrels per day in the week, while refinery utilization rates rose by 0.2 percentage point in the week to 94.9%, according to the EIA.

Gasoline stocks rose by 4.2 million barrels in the week to 232.1 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with expectations for a 236,000-barrel draw.​

Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 1.7 million barrels in the week to 103.6 million barrels, versus forecasts for a 1 million-barrel drop, the EIA data showed.

Net U.S. crude imports rose by 2.94 million barrels per day, the EIA said.
Source: Reuters