US crude oil prices $91 per barrel

Crude oil prices eased toward $91 per barrel Thursday on the New York Mercantile Exchange as oil supplies rose in the week. The Energy Information Administration said commercial crude oil inventories rose by 2.6 million barrels in the week to 384 million barrels. Crude oil prices had been elevated slightly, with traders expecting supplies to have dropped as refineries allowed inventories to dwindle to ready themselves for spring maintenance projects. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for April delivery dropped 32 cents to $92.20 per barrel. Gasoline lost 2.36 cents to settle at $3.1054 a gallon. Home heating oil lost 0.85 cents to reach $2.9135 a gallon. Natural gas added 2.6 cents to hit $3.699 per million British thermal units. At the pump, the national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline fell from Wednesday's $3.706 per gallon to $3.701, the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report said.