HOUSTON, June 2 (Xinhua) -- Both crude oil imports and exports of the United States decreased in the week ending May 27, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a report released on Thursday.

       U.S. crude oil imports averaged 6.218 million barrels per day (b/d) last week, down by about 268,000 b/d from the previous week, while crude oil exports averaged about 3.99 million b/d, down by about 351,000 b/d from the previous week, according to the Weekly Petroleum Status Report.

       Over the past four weeks, crude oil imports averaged about 6.385 million b/d, up by 7.3 percent from the same four-week period last year.

       During the same period, crude oil exports averaged about 3.683 million b/d, up by 33 percent year on year.

       The United States has been one of the world's important oil producers in past years with the help of its shale oil production growth.