US crude, gasoline stockpiles fall; distillates build last week, EIA says

HOUSTON, April 30 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil and gasoline stocks fell, while distillate inventories rose last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

Crude inventories fell by 2.7 million barrels to 440.4 million barrels in the week ended April 25, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 429,000-barrel rise.

Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub USOICC=ECI rose by 682,000 barrels in the week ended April 25, the EIA said.

Refinery crude runs USOICR=ECI rose by 189,000 barrels per day in the week, while refinery utilization rates USOIRU=ECI rose by 0.5 percentage point to 88.6% of total capacity.

Gasoline stocks USOILG=ECI fell by 4 million barrels in the week to 225.5 million barrels, compared with expectations for a 1 million-barrel draw.

Distillate stockpiles USOILD=ECI, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 900,000 barrels in the week to 107.8 million barrels, versus expectations for a 1.6 million-barrel drop, data showed.

Net U.S. crude imports USOICI=ECI fell last week by 663,000 bpd, the EIA said.