Washington, July 01 (QNA) - Crude oil inventories in the United States recorded their lowest level since 2018 in the week ending June 26, amid increased demand from domestic refineries, while gasoline inventories also tumbled ahead of the July 4 weekend holiday, said the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Wednesday. 
EIA added that commercial crude oil inventories fell by 3.8 million barrels to 408.4 million barrels in the reported week, the lowest level since September 2018.
Since the outbreak of tensions in the Middle East in late February, total US inventories, including commercial stocks and the government emergency reserve (Strategic Petroleum Reserve), have declined by 120.71 million barrels to 734 million, the lowest level since May 1984.
The Administration stated that crude oil inventories at the Cushing, Oklahoma delivery hub rose by 709,000 barrels during the week, after declining for nine consecutive weeks to below the operational minimum threshold of around 20 million barrels.
Brent crude futures continued their decline, falling 1.6%, while US crude futures showed little change, slipping by about 1% following a smaller-than-expected draw in crude inventories.
EIA further clarified that refinery crude intake increased by 85,000 barrels per day, and refinery utilization rose by 0.5 percentage points during the week to 96.6%.
Data showed that US gasoline inventories declined by about 2.3 million barrels during the week to 214 million barrels.
In addition, US gasoline futures continued to post gains, rising 1.1% after data showed a larger-than-expected draw in gasoline inventories.
The American Automobile Association (AAA) reported that the national average gasoline price at fueling stations stood at about USD 3.85 per gallon today.
آ  Data showed that distillate inventories, which include diesel and heating oil, jumped by 2.5 million barrels to 108.6 million barrels, compared with expectations for a decline of half a million barrels.
Meanwhile, US diesel futures gave up earlier gains but still rose about 0.4% after data showed an unexpected build in distillate inventories.
EIA further stated that net US crude oil imports rose by 370,000 barrels per day. (QNA)