Crude oil prices ease slightly

NEW YORK, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Crude oil prices eased back below $80 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Thursday, despite U.S. stockpiles dropping.

The Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that stockpiles of crude lost 3.9 percent in the week ending Oct. 30. Inventories remain high, despite the sizable markdown.

As stocks rose Thursday in New York, the dollar gained against the euro, putting pressure on commodities prices.

The price of light, sweet crude lost 57 cents to $79.79 per barrel. Heating oil prices lost 0.0302 cents to $2.06 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline prices shed 0.0226 cents to $1.9901 cents per gallon.

Natural gas prices gained 0.087 cents to $4.812 per million British thermal units.

At the pump, retail prices fell slightly. The national average price of unleaded gasoline was $2.682 per gallon Thursday, down from Wednesday's $2.684, AAA said.