Crude oil stalls above $93

The price of crude oil Wednesday held above $93 per barrel in New York with an inventory report viewed as neutral by traders. The Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that oil supplies fell by 1.3 million barrels to 382.7 million in the week ending Friday. The draw is not unusual for this time of year, however, as refineries seek to lower their inventory just ahead of a traditional period of short-term shut-down maintenance projects. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude oil held steady overnight at $93.24 per barrel. Gasoline shed 0.29 cents to $3.0896 per gallon. Home heating oil lost 0.12 cents to reach $2.9895 a gallon. Natural gas added 1.4 cents to reach $3.969 per million British thermal units. At the pump, a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $3.691 Thursday, down from Wednesday's $3.697, the AAA Fuel Gauge Report said.