Crude oil eases back - UPI.com NEW YORK, Jan. 4 (UPI) -- Light, sweet crude oil prices settled under $103 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange in advance of a government report on U.S. stockpiles. February delivery West Texas Intermediate crude oil shed $1.04 to $102.78 per barrel Wednesday morning. Home heating oil added 2.78 cents to reach $3.066 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline rose 0.33 cents to $2.7519 per gallon. Henry Hub natural gas prices gained 6.3 cents to $3.05 per million British thermal units. At the pump, the national average price of unleaded gasoline rose to $3.288 per gallon from Tuesday's $3.279, AAA said.