US crude stocks, gasoline and distillate inventories fall, EIA says

NEW YORK, March 26 (Reuters) - U.S. crude stocks, gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

Crude inventories fell by 3.3 million barrels to 433.6 million barrels in the week ended March 21, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 956,000-barrel draw.

Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub USOICC=ECI fell by 755,000 barrels, the EIA said.

Refinery crude runs USOICR=ECI rose by 87,000 barrels per day, the EIA said.

Refinery utilization rates USOIRU=ECI rose by 0.1 percentage points in the week.

U.S. gasoline stocks USOILG=ECI fell by 1.4 million barrels in the week to 239.1 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.8 million-barrel draw.​

Distillate stockpiles USOILD=ECI, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 420,000 barrels in the week to 114.4 million barrels, versus expectations for a 1.6 million-barrel drop, the EIA data showed.

Net U.S. crude imports USOICI=ECI rose last week by 845,000 barrels per day, EIA said.