US Government Says Crude Oil Inventories Drop

WASHINGTON, July 21 (AFP) - US commercial crude oil inventories drained lower but stocks of gasoline and heating oil expanded last week, a survey by the Department of Energy showed Wednesday.
Crude oil stocks dropped 3.6 million barrels to 299.3 million, about average for the time of year, the government said.
Gasoline inventories rose 2.5 million barrels to 208.4 million, also in line with the average for this time of year with much of the high-demand summer period already past.
Distillates -- heating oil and diesel -- rose 1.7 million to 118.4 million, with most of the increase caused by heating oil inventories, which rose 1.3 million barrels to 45.8 million.
A parallel survey by the American Petroleum Institute found crude oil stocks rose 38,000 barrels to 300.1 million, gasoline rose 3.9 million barrels to 212.6 million and distillates fell 59,000 barrels to 116.6 million.
The crude oil reserves data exclude the 663.4-million-barrel US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, an emergency supply stored in huge underground salt caverns along the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico.