Crude oil prices fall after prediction

NEW YORK, Dec. 9 (UPI) -- Crude oil prices fell Tuesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange after the U.S. Department of Energy predicted a $51.17 per barrel average for 2009.

The prediction cuts the expected $100.40 per barrel average for 2008 almost in half, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday.

Crude oil prices dropped $1.59 to $42.40 per barrel. Heating oil prices fell 0.0504 cents to $1.4436 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline fell 0.017 cents to 94.35 cents per gallon. Natural gas prices rose 0.03 cents to $5.65 per million British thermal units.

At the pump, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $1.698 Tuesday, down from Monday's $1.716 a gallon, AAA said.