By Sara Sjolin
LONDON (MarketWatch) -- Crude oil inched higher on Thursday, as the ongoing lack of supply from Libya lent support to prices, although a stronger dollar kept gains in check. The U.S. currency climbed after the Federal Reserve in its statement on Wednesday indicated it still has plans to roll back monetary stimulus, adding pressure on dollar-denominated commodities such as oil. Crude for December delivery CLZ3 -0.43% rose 13 cents, or 0.1%, to $96.90 a barrel, partly recovering from a $1.43 loss on Wednesday. Elsewhere in the energy complex, gasoline for November RBX3 -0.49% slipped 0.1% to $2.65 a gallon, while heating oil for the same month was little changed at $2.98 a gallon. Natural gas for December rose 0.5% to $3.64 per million British thermal units.
