Crude oil prices stagnant, near $93

Crude oil held near $93 per barrel Wednesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, with price gains held back by disappointing data from Europe. Eurostat said Tuesday that the gross domestic product for the 17-nation eurozone fell 0.2 percent in the second quarter compared to the first after stalling in the first three months of the year. Compared to the second quarter of 2011, the eurozone's economy has contracted 0.4 percent, the data agency said. West Texas Intermediate crude oil for September delivery in New York shed 27 cents to $93.11 per barrel. The natural gas price was 5.8 cents lower at $2.776 per million British thermal units. Home heating oil was up 1.44 cents at $3.049 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline gained 2.39 cents to reach $3.0253 a gallon. At the pump, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $3.709 Wednesday, up from $3.702 Tuesday, AAA reported.