Oil, Gold Prices Drop on Wednesday, Dollar Hikes

Benchmark US crude oil for February delivery fell 57 cents to $78.96 a barrel Wednesday. Brent crude for February delivery fell $1.07 to $83.26 a barrel.

Wholesale gasoline for January delivery was unchanged at $2.36 a gallon. January heating oil rose 3 cents to $3.38 a gallon. January natural gas fell 57 cents to $4.71 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Gold for February delivery fell $7.30 to $1,815.80 an ounce. Silver for March delivery fell 38 cents to $23.84 an ounce and March copper was unchanged at $3.84 a pound.

The dollar rose to 134.38 Japanese yen from 133.48 yen. The euro fell to $1.0617 from $1.0642.