US crude oil stockpiles rose unexpectedly last week to an all-time high as imports increased and exports fell, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.
Crude inventories rose 5.7 million barrels in the week to June 5 to 538.1 million barrels, most in history, not including the U.S. strategic reserves.
Analysts were expecting a 1.7 million-barrel decline, but the nation has increased imports in recent weeks, particularly from Saudi Arabia, while exports dropped to lows not seen since November.
Crude inventories in the Gulf Coast export and refining hub jumped 6.9 million barrels to a record 303.7 million barrels.
Stocks at the key hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, fell by 2.3 million barrels, but that was not enough to offset the gains elsewhere.
"These are bearish numbers really. Crude [stocks] rose again despite being stymied by subdued demand. We are down significantly from a year ago today and saw builds in products as well," said Matt Smith, director of commodity research at Clipper Data.
Imports averaged 6.9 million barrels per day, while exports declined to 2.4 million bpd, so overall net U.S. crude imports rose by 1 million bpd, the EIA said.
Gasoline inventories rose 866,000 barrels, compared with analysts' expectations for a 71,000-barrel rise. Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, increased by 1.6 million barrels versus expectations for a 3 million-barrel build.
Product supplied, a proxy for demand, showed gasoline consumption rebounded to 7.9 million bpd, still roughly 20% below the year-ago period, but an improvement from recent weeks. Overall, gasoline demand is down 16% from a year ago.
Refinery crude runs rose by 177,000 bpd and refinery utilization rates rose by 1.3 percentage points to 73.1% of capacity.
The market was lower after the data. U.S. crude futures fell 2% to $38.18 a barrel, while Brent was down 1.4% to $40.60 a barrel.
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