US crude oil holds above $97 per barrel

Crude oil held above $97 a barrel in New York after the Energy Information Administration said U.S. inventories dropped sharply in the week. Supplies remain high, but the draw of 5.5 million barrels sent prices higher late Wednesday. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude added 33 cents to $97.53 per barrel Thursday. Reformulated gasoline blendstock for January dropped 0.22 cents to $2.717 a gallon. January heating oil dropped 0.64 cent to hit $3.0527 a gallon while natural gas added 18 cents to reach $4.14 per million British thermal units. The national average price of unleaded regular gasoline dropped to $3.252 a gallon from Wednesday's $3.257 a gallon, the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report said.