Ethanol production scaled back last week while stocks thinned for the first time in more than a month.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration says production averaged just over 1 million barrels a day, down 33,000 on the week but about 3 percent higher than a year ago.

Stocks fell to just under 26 million barrels, the first reduction in five weeks.

Stocks are about 25 percent higher than this time last year and 12 percent above the five-year average.

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