Oil prices hung below $79 a barrel Tuesday in Asia, giving back some gains as regional stock markets mostly fell and the dollar strengthened moderately. Benchmark crude for February delivery was down 11 cents to $78.66 a barrel at midday Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract settled up 72 cents at $78.77 on Monday after surging above $79 as an extended cold snap in the U.S. triggered an end-of-year rally in energy futures. Futures contracts for oil, natural gas and heating oil have all become more expensive this month as snow storms blanketed parts of the U.S. and a sharp drop in supplies of crude and other fuels surprised traders. Analysts say oil could rise above $80 before the end of the year if U.S. inventories figures later this week show adrop in stockpiles, which would suggest improving demand in the world's largest economy. Providing a negative cue for oil in Asia was a mild sell-off in stock markets -- sometimes a barometer for oil traders of confidence in the economy -- and a stronger dollar. Oil, which is traded in dollars, often moves in the opposite direction to the currency. In other Nymex trading in January contracts, heating oil climbed 0.5 cents to $2.0788 gallon while gasoline added 0.2 cents to $2.02 a gallon. Natural gas fell by 2.5 cents to $5.965 per 1,000 cubic feet. In London, Brent crude for February delivery fell 4 cents to $77.32 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange. 