Crude oil climbs above $71 per barrel

NEW YORK, Aug. 3 (UPI) -- The price of light, sweet crude jumped above $71 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Monday, as stocks headed up on Wall Street.

Crude oil reached $71.37 per barrel, up $1.92 from Friday's closing price. Heating oil prices gained 0.054 cents to $1.874 per gallon. Reformulated gasoline prices fell 0.0015 cents to $2.0635 per gallon. Natural gas prices rose 0.326 cents to $3.99 per million British thermal units.

At the pump, the national average price for unleaded gasoline rose to $2.549 Monday from $2.539, AAA said.