US crude oil supplies grow by 3.8 million barrels

[August 30, 2012]  NEW YORK (AP) -- The nation's crude oil supplies increased last week, the government said Wednesday.

Crude supplies grew by 3.8 million barrels, or 1 percent, to 364.5 million barrels, which is 2.1 percent above year-ago levels, the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report.

Analysts expected a drop of 2 million barrels for the week ended Aug. 24, according to Platts, the energy information arm of McGraw-Hill Cos.

Gasoline supplies shrank by 1.5 million barrels, or 0.7 percent, to 201.2 million barrels. That's 3.6 percent less than year-ago levels. Analysts expected gasoline supplies to decrease by 2 million barrels.

Demand for gasoline over the four weeks ended Aug. 24 was 1 percent below a year earlier, averaging 9.1 million barrels a day.

U.S. refineries ran at 91.2 percent of total capacity on average, unchanged from the prior week. Analysts expected capacity to fall to 90.95 percent.

Supplies of distillate fuel, which include diesel and heating oil, grew by 900,000 barrels to 126.1 million barrels. Analysts expected distillate stocks to be unchanged.

Benchmark crude fell $1.10 to $95.23 a barrel in New York.

[Associated Press]

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