Crude oil prices eased back close to $80 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, despite U.S. stockpiles dropping.

The Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that stockpiles of crude lost 3.9 percent in the week ending Oct. 30. Inventories remain high, despite the sizable markdown.

The price of light, sweet crude lost 36 cents overnight to $80.04 per barrel. Heating oil prices lost 0.0126 cents to $2.0776 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline prices shed 0.0123 cents to $2.004 cents per gallon.

Natural gas prices dropped 0.025 cents to $4.70 per million British thermal units.

At the pump, retail prices fell slightly. The national average price of unleaded gasoline was $2.682 per gallon Thursday, down from Wednesday's $2.684, AAA said.