Reversing a five-year-long decline trend, U.S. gross crude imports rose by 7 percent, or by 528,000 barrels per day, in the first half of this year compared to the same period last year, with imports from OPEC producers increasing the most, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday. This was the first increase since 2010, and imports between 2010 and 2015 had been decreasing as a result of increasing U.S. production, the EIA noted. Between January and June of this year, imports from Nigeria, Iraq, and other OPEC members rose by 504,000 bpd. Imports from Mexico dropped by 118,000 bpd, and offset the higher imports from Canada, which resulted in a non-OPEC imports rise of just below 24,000 bpd. U.S.-wide, imports from Nigeria, Iraq, and Canada contributed the most to the higher imports, the EIA said. The reasons for the increased imports are to be […]