Crude oil and gasoline rose after a government report showed an unexpected drop in U.S. inventories of the motor fuel as refiners reduced operating rates.
Gasoline supplies declined 4.7 million barrels to 212.6 million last week, the biggest reduction since September, the Energy Department said. Stockpiles were forecast to climb by 200,000 barrels, according to a Bloomberg News survey. Prices also increased after stocks rallied and the dollar fell.
“Nobody was looking for a gasoline decline of that size,†said Sean Brodrick, natural resource analyst with Weiss Research in Jupiter, Florida. “This shows that refineries are keeping processing rates too low because there’s obviously some demand out there for gasoline.â€
Crude oil for June delivery rose $1.05, or 2.1 percent, to settle at $50.97 a barrel at 2:43 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices are up 14 percent this year.
Click here to read the full article…
