Crude oil prices up slightly Wednesday

New York -- Crude oil prices rose slightly to $113.23 a barrel Wednesday after the International Energy Agency said market fundamentals were softening.

The U.S. Department of Energy lowered its forecast for the average price of oil in 2008 down 6.5 percent to $119.09 per barrel on Tuesday, The Wall Street Journal reported.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, oil prices dropped rose 23 cents to $113.23 per barrel. Heating oil prices fell slightly, down 0.0019 cents to $3.0794 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline prices rose 0.0124 cents to $2.862 per gallon. Natural gas prices rose 0.03 cents to $8.365 per million British thermal units.

The national average retail price of unleaded regular gasoline fell 0.012 cents to $3.787 per gallon, the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report said.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International.