US OIL INVENTORIES: Crude Oil,Gasoline Up Less Than Expected

US OIL INVENTORIES: Crude Oil,Gasoline Up Less Than Expected OTTAWA -(Dow Jones)- U.S. crude-oil inventories in the week ended Feb. 8 rose less than analysts' expectations, according to data released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Energy. Crude stockpiles rose 1.1 million barrels to 301.1 million barrels, the department's Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report. That compared with an average forecast of a 2.7 million-barrel increase in a Dow Jones Newswires survey of 16 analysts. Gasoline stockpiles rose 1.7 million barrels to 229.2 million barrels, compared with an average survey estimate of a 1.9 million-barrel gain. Distillate stockpiles fell 100,000 barrels to 127 million barrels, compared with analysts' forecasts of a 1.2 million-barrel drawdown. Refinery use rose 0.8 percentage points to 85.1% of capacity. Analysts had expected refinery use to hold steady at 84.3%. U.S. Oil Inventories: For week ended Feb. 8. Crude Gasoline Distillates Refinery Use EIA data: +1.1 +1.7 -0.1 +0.8 Forecast: +2.7 +1.9 -1.2 unch Figures in millions of barrels, except for refining capacity, which is reported in percentage points. Forecasts are the average of expectations in a Dow Jones Newswires survey of analysts earlier in the week. -Hyun Young Lee,Dow Jones Newswires; 613-237-0669; hyunyoung.lee@dowjones.com (END) Dow Jones Newswires 02-13-081054ET Copyright (c) 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.