Oil stockpiles fall more than expected

Distillate stocks, which include heating oil and diesel fuel, fell 700,000 barrels to 123.5 million barrels, compared with analysts’ forecast of a build of 500,000 barrels

U.S. crude inventories fell more than analysts expected last week, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Energy, according to MarketWatch.com.

“Crude oil stockpiles dropped 3.7 million barrels to 369.9 million barrels during the week ended Aug. 3, compared with an average survey estimate of a decline of 500,000 barrels. The American Petroleum Institute, an industry group, said its own survey, released late Tuesday, showed U.S. crude stockpiles fell by 5.4 million barrels last week.

“Oil futures shot higher after the report, but quickly pared most of their gains. Light, sweet crude for September delivery recently rose 57 cents, or 0.6%, to $94.24 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

“Gasoline stockpiles fell 1.8 million barrels to 206.1 million barrels, the department’s Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report, compared with a 1 million-barrel draw forecast in a Dow Jones Newswires survey of analysts.”

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