US Cash Products-USG mogas diffs climb as supply dips

NEW YORK, May 20 (Reuters) - Gasoline values in U.S. Gulf Coast climbed on Wednesday, despite higher benchmark values on the NYMEX, on tightening gasoline supplies, dealers said.

Gulf Coast conventional cash gasoline traded a penny higher against a June benchmark contract that was up 4 cents by midday.

June RBOB futures on the NYMEX climbed on Wednesday after a government report showed that gasoline stocks dropped 4.3 million barrels to 204 million barrels versus a forecast 1.2-million-barrel fall last week.

"Supplies are tightening up ahead of driving season," said Addison Armstrong at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. "The real wild card is will there even be a driving season this summer?"

The report by the Energy Administration Information also showed U.S. gasoline demand during the past four weeks was down 1.2 percent from a year ago but up on the week.

In the New York Harbor and Midwest, gasoline differentials slipped on Wednesday, although outright prices rose as they werebuoyed up by the rising NYMEX benchmarks.

U.S. refinery utilization unexpectedly fell 1.9 percentage points to 81.8 percent of capacity, against a forecast for a small rise, the EIA said.

In refinery news, Flint Hills shut a gasoline-making unit at its Corpus Christi, Texas refinery after a fire in the unit Tuesday. [ID:nN19431249]

Sunoco Inc (SUN.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said that the FCC at its Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania, refinery was still shut after a fire Sunday. [ID:nN20500029]