Oil eases back

Crude oil prices eased toward $86 per barrel in New York Thursday, held in check by a slight increase in the US stockpile. The US Energy Information Administration's monthly report said crude oil inventories in the week rose by 800,000 barrels to 372.6 million barrels, which is "well above the upper limit of the average range for this time of year," EIA said late Wednesday. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude oil gave up 27 cents to $86.52 per barrel. Home heating oil gained 0.48 cents to reach $2.9716 a gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline lost 0.65 cents to $2.64 a gallon. Natural gas shed 3.3 cents to $3.349 per million British thermal units. At the pump, AAA reported a national average price for regular unleaded gasoline at $3.301 per gallon, down from Wednesday's $3.315.