LONDON: Northwest European gasoline refining margins rose on Wednesday as crude prices dropped sharply while an unexpected rise in US gasoline stocks pointed to continued weak demand.

US gasoline stocks rose last week by 1.9 million barrels in the week, EIA data showed, compared with expectations for a 1.8 million-barrel drop.

Refinery crude runs fell by 551,000 bpd in the last week, the EIA said, and refinery utilization rates fell by 2.2 percentage points to 72.9% of capacity.?

European and US oil refineries face a wave of closures due to a plateau in fuel demand, tightening environmental rules and overseas competition, prompting some owners to opt for an easier alternative - converting plants to produce biofuels.

BB Energy has hired Andrea Fraccaroli from Italy's Eni to lead its west African crude trading, the trading house's global head of crude oil trading said on Wednesday.