Nov. 15 (Bloomberg) -- Crude oil and heating oil were little changed in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange on mixed economic data. Gasoline declined on speculation that ConocoPhillips will soon restart its Bayway refinery in New Jersey. Ethanol rebounded after four straight declines. Crude Oil Crude oil for December delivery fell 2 cents to settle at $84.86 a barrel. Futures have risen 11 percent in the past year. Futures, which dropped 2.3 percent last week, were steady after the Commerce Department reported that U.S. retail sales climbed more than forecast in October and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s general economic index slipped from expansion to contraction. On the spot market, Light Louisiana Sweet’s premium to the benchmark West Texas Intermediate gained 30 cents to $3.75 a barrel. Heavy Louisiana Sweet’s premium rose 10 cents to $2.75. WTI traded at parity to the Nymex price. Among the sour crudes, Poseidon gained 20 cents to a discount of $2.35 and Mars Blend gained 20 cents to a discount of $1.50. Heating Oil Heating oil for December delivery added 0.77 cent, or 0.3 percent, to $2.3709. The price has gained 6.8 percent in November and 21 percent in the past year. Heating oil is traded as a proxy for diesel. The December heating oil crack spread widened 42 cents to $14.79 a barrel. On the spot market, the premium for ultra-low-sulfur diesel in New York Harbor fell 0.5 cent to 3.25 cents a gallon. In Chicago, the premium dropped 1.5 cents to 1.75 cents. Gasoline Gasoline for December delivery declined for the third straight day, dropping 1.49 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $2.195 a gallon. Gasoline has gained 15 percent in the past year. The December gasoline crack spread slipped 61 cents to $7.33 a barrel. On the spot market, the premium for California-blend gasoline, or Carbob, fell 10.08 cents to 2.8 cents a gallon in San Francisco after Tesoro Corp. said it had restarted most of the units at its Golden Eagle refinery in Martinez, California. The units were shut last week because of a power failure. Ethanol Denatured ethanol for December delivery rose after four straight losses, gaining 6.2 cents, or 2.9 percent, to settle at $2.201 a gallon on the Chicago Board of Trade. Prices have increased 13 percent this year. In cash market trading ethanol fell 2.5 cents to $2.445 a gallon in New York, dropped 4.25 cents to $2.3625 in Chicago, was unchanged at $2.505 on the Gulf Coast, and slipped 1 cent to $2.465 on the West Coast. Refineries and Transport Tesoro Corp. has restarted most of the units idled by a power failure last week at its Golden Eagle refinery in Martinez, California, according to a company spokesman. The plant is expected to be at “targeted rates” early this week. Irving Oil Corp. said all units except for one that underwent work during a turnaround are online at its Saint John refinery in New Brunswick. That unit is in “start-up sequence,” said Sam Robinson, a spokeswoman for the plant. Hess Corp. said repairs on the fluid catalytic cracker at its Port Reading, New Jersey, refinery are taking place this week and that the plant won’t resume production until the unit is restarted. --Editors: Richard Stubbe, Bill Banker. To contact the reporter on this story: Richard Stubbe in Dallas at rstubbe1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dan Stets at dstets@bloomberg.net

Source