NYMEX-Crude dips to 2-week low on EIA stock builds

* EIA says petroleum stocks up, validating API data

* Equities dip as crude's drop hits energy shares

NEW YORK, Jan 13 (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures slid on
Wednesday to a two-week low after government data showed crude
and gasoline inventories rose much more than expected last
week.

Surprising the market, the Energy Information
Administration said total distillate stockpiles also rose,
dashing expectations for a drawdown.

But heating oil stocks, a major component of distillates,
fell, the EIA said, as demand rose due to extreme cold that hit
the U.S. Northeast, the top regional heating oil market.

The EIA data essentially validated the report late Tuesday
from the industry group American Petroleum Institute.

"The numbers were a little bit shocking, though they are in
line with the API," said Peter Beutel, president of Cameron
Hanover, New Canaan, Connecticut.

Oil fitures remained pressured by milder weather forecast
for the United States after the recent deep freeze.

Equities prices edged down on Wall Street as falling oil
prices weighed on energy shares and Google Inc (GOOG.O) slumped
after it said it might withdraw from China. [.N]

China's move on Tuesday to raise bank reserve requirements
pressured oil and other commodities on concerns that a tighter
monetary policy cool the economy.

NYMEX February crude oil options expire on Thursday.

PRICES

* On the New York Mercantile Exchange at 11:35 a.m. EST
(1635 GMT), February crude CLG0 was down $1.58 or 1.96
percent, at $79.21 a barrel, trading from $78.37, lowest since
Dec. 29's low of $78.02, to $80.40.

* In London, February Brent crude LCOG0 dropped $1.56, or
1.97 percent to $77.74 a barrel, trading from $77.04 to
$78.92.

* NYMEX February RBOB RBG0 fell 4.51 cents, or 2.15
percent, to $2.0527 a gallon, trading from $2.0212, lowest
since Dec. 30's low of $2.0125, to $2.0770.

* NYMEX February heating oil HOG0 skidded 5.15 cents, or
2.46 percent to $2.0793 a gallon, trading from $2.0600, lowest
since Dec. 28's low of $2.0389, to $2.1189.

* The February/February heating oil crack spread
<0#CL-HO=R> was at $8.12, after ending at $8.74 on Tuesday. The
February/February RBOB crack spread <0#RB-CL=R> was at $7.00,
after ending at $7.32 on Tuesday.

* The spread between the current front month and the
five-year forward crude contract CLc61 was at $15.17, based
on the February 2015 contract Tuesday settlement at $94.38. The
spread ended Tuesday at $13.59.

TECHNICALS

NYMEX crude 10-day/20-day moving average: $81.38/$78.12

Technical support/resistance:

NYMEX crude: $80.00/$85.00

NYMEX heating oil: $2.10/$2.20

NYMEX RBOB: $2.10/$2.20

For a full report on technicals, click on [ID:nLDE60C1KQ]

MARKET NEWS

* Domestic crude inventories rose 3.7 million barrels to
331.0 million barrels last week, the EIA said, far greater than
the forecast for a 1.2 million barrel increase, which matched
the build API reported on Tuesday. [EIA/S]

* Crude stocks at the NYMEX delivery hub in Cushing,
Oklahoma, fell 1.2 million barrels to 34.5 million barrels,
from the record 35.7 million barrels the week before.

* Total distillate stocks rose 1.4 million barrels to 160.4
million barrels, against the forecast for a 1.8 million barrel
drawdown but smaller than the API's 3.6 million build.

* Heating oil stocks fell 1.1 million barrels to 42.0
million barrels against the API's report of a 425,000 barrel
increase.

* Gasoline stocks increased 3.8 million barrels to 223.5
million barrels against expectations for a 1.2 million barrel
increase but much smaller than the API build of 6.8 million
barrels.

* Temperatures in the northern United States will shift to
above normal or even well above normal later this week and into
next week, forecaster DTN Meteorlogix said. [ID:nDTN528]
(Reporting by Gene Ramos and Robert Gibbons; Editing by David
Gregorio)