US oil demand rises on increased gasoline demand
NEW YORK, May 31 (Reuters) - US total oil demand rose for the second consecutive month in March, fueled in part by the continued strength in demand for gasoline, federal data released on Tuesday showed.
US oil demand rose by 2%, or 378 Mbpd, from a year ago to 19.61 MMbpd, data from the US EIA showed.
The March figures mark the fourth year-over-year increase in total oil demand in the last nine months, including February's growth of 1.5%, EIA data shows.
The demand growth was led by gasoline, which jumped 3.8%, or 344 Mbpd, from a year ago to 9.4 MMbpd, according to the EIA's petroleum supply monthly report.
The gasoline demand numbers were strong enough to overcome weaker demand for distillates, which fell to 2.8%, or 113 Mbpd, versus last year.
The US Department of Transportation released figures last week that showed motorists logged 5% more miles on U.S. roads in March than they did a year earlier, fueling a record pace in vehicle miles traveled for the first three months of the year.
The 5% increase resulted in 273.4 billion miles being driven in the month, an historic high for March. (Reporting By Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
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