US crude and fuel stocks fall, EIA says

HOUSTON, Feb 19 - U.S. crude, gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Thursday.

Crude inventories fell by 9 million barrels to 419.8 million barrels in the week ended February 13, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 2.1 million-barrel rise.

Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub USOICC=ECI fell by 1.1 million barrels, the EIA said.

Refinery crude runs USOICR=ECI rose by 77,000 barrels per day in the week ended February 13, the EIA said.

Refinery utilization rates USOIRU=ECI rose by 1.6 percentage points in the week to 91%.

U.S. gasoline stocks USOILG=ECI fell by 3.2 million barrels in the week to 255.8 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 0.3 million-barrel draw.​

Distillate stockpiles USOILD=ECI, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 4.6 million barrels in the week to 120.1 million barrels, versus expectations for a 1.4 million-barrel drop, the EIA data showed.

Net U.S. crude imports USOICI=ECI fell by 1.13 million bpd, EIA said.