US crude oil slips under $95

The price for a barrel of crude oil slipped to less than $95 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday with traders focused on monetary policy. The monetary policy in question, the U.S. Federal Reserve's $85 billion per month asset purchasing program, may not be changed for months, although speculation has been building since bank Chairman Ben Bernanke let the cat out of the bag during recent testimony on Capital Hill. Bernanke said the Fed might pull back on the central bank's quantitative easing program sooner than expected. That has made many on Wall Street jittery. On Tuesday, West Texas Intermediate crude oil in New York shed 73 cents to $94.99. Reformulated blendstock gasoline lost 4.12 cents to $2.8069 a gallon. Home heating oil gave 7.7 cents to reach $2.8069 a gallon. Natural gas also dropped, giving up 8 cents to $3.72 per million British thermal units. At the pump, the average price for a gallon of unleaded regular gasoline was $3.633, down from Monday's $3.635, AAA Fuel Gauge report said.