AlQa'dah 19, 1434, Sep 25, 2013, SPA -- U.S. crude-oil inventories rose unexpectedly last week, while supplies of gasoline and distillates fell slightly, the government reported Wednesday. Crude supplies increased by 2.6 million barrels, or 0.7 percent to 358.3 million barrels, which is 1.9 percent below year-ago levels, the Energy Department said in its weekly petroleum inventory report. Analysts had expected a decline. Gasoline inventories rose by 200,000 barrels, or 0.1 percent, to 216.2 million barrels, which is 10.4 percent above year-ago levels, the department's Energy Information Administration (EIA) said. Analysts expected gasoline supplies to drop. Demand for gasoline over the last four weeks was up 0.8 percent from a year ago, averaging 8.9 million barrels a day, the EIA said. Refineries operated at 90.3 percent of total capacity, down 2.2 percentage points from the previous week. Inventories of distillates-including diesel, heating oil, and jet fuel-fell by 200,000 barrels to 130.9 million barrels. Analysts expected a bigger decline. After the EIA report, benchmark light sweet crude futures were up slightly to near $103.50 a barrel in midday trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
