Oil prices rise Tuesday morning

Crude oil prices rose Tuesday to $49.80 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after sinking to a 42-month low.

Oil fell to $48.75 per barrel after the Organization of Oil Exporting Countries put off a decision on production cuts Saturday in an informal meeting in Cairo. OPEC oil ministers scheduled a meeting for Dec. 17.

Crude oil prices gained $1.05 overnight to $49.80 per barrel. Heating oil prices gained 0.0192 cents to $1.6343 per gallon. Reformulated blendstock gasoline rose 0.0051 cents to $1.1163 per gallon. Natural gas prices rose 0.018 cents to $6.622 per million British thermal units.

At the pump, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $1.812 Tuesday, down from Monday's $1.82 a gallon, AAA said.