US crude stocks, gasoline and distillate inventories fall - EIA

U.S. crude stocks, gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

Crude inventories fell by 961,000 barrels to 422.8 million barrels in the week ended October 17, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.2 million-barrel rise.

Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub USOICC=ECI fell by 770,000 barrels in the week, the EIA said.

Refinery crude runs USOICR=ECI rose by 600,000 barrels per day (bpd), the EIA said, while utilization rates USOIRU=ECI rose by 2.9 percentage points in the week to 88.6%.

U.S. gasoline stocks USOILG=ECI fell by 2.1 million barrels in the week to 216.7 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 0.8 million-barrel draw.​

Distillate stockpiles USOILD=ECI, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 1.5 million barrels in the week to 115.6 million barrels, versus expectations for a 1.9 million-barrel drop, the EIA data showed.

Net U.S. crude imports USOICI=ECI rose last week by 656,000 bpd, EIA said.