U.S. crude oil, gasoline stocks fall unexpectedly: EIA

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. crude oil stocks fell unexpectedly last week, their first drop in 10 weeks, as imports decreased, the federal Energy Information Administration said in weekly data released Wednesday.

Gasoline stocks fell as refiners slowed production.

EIA said crude inventories in the United States fell 4.7 million barrels to 370.6 million barrels in the week ended May 8, countering a 1.4-million-barrel increase forecast by analysts polled by Reuters.

The surprise drop came as imports fell 1.21 million barrels per day to 8.71 million bpd. U.S. crude oil rose about $1 after the data was released to a session high of $59.90 per barrel before pulling back.

“The amazing run over the last months on building crude stocks had to come to an end,” said Phil Flynn, analyst at Alaron Trading in Chicago.

“We’re starting to feel the impact of OPEC production cuts, and oil has gone to Europe as higher Brent prices have been attracting imports that would normally have gone to the United States,” Flynn added.

Reuters