US crude oil stockpiles shoot up as Cushing sets record: EIA

[NEW YORK] US crude stocks rose nearly three times as much as expected last week, as storage at the Cushing, Oklahoma oil hub reached a new record, data from the Energy Information Administration showed on Wednesday.

Crude inventories rose by 9.6 million barrels in the last week, compared with analysts' expectations for an increase of 3.8 million barrels.

Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub rose by 2.865 million barrels, EIA said. The increase brings Cushing to an all-time record since the EIA began tracking the hub.

Refinery crude runs rose by 136,000 barrels per day, EIA data showed. Refinery utilization rates rose by 0.3 percentage points.

Gasoline stocks fell by 4.5 million barrels, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 883,000 barrels drop.

Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, rose by 380,000 barrels, versus expectations for a 1.1 million barrels drop, the EIA data showed.

US crude imports rose last week by 703,000 barrels per day.

REUTERS