Oil Futures Climb to $62

Updated from 11:47 a.m. EST

Energy futures were mixed after a volatile trading session Thursday as traders weighed new natural gas inventory figures against more softness in the world's equity markets.

After falling sharply early on, the April contract for light sweet crude finished the day a penny higher at $62 a barrel at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gasoline climbed 5 cents to $1.90 a gallon, and heating oil finished even at $1.78 a gallon.

The near-term contract for natural gas closed 1 cent lower at $7.29 per million British thermal units.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged more than 200 points in early trading before erasing most of the loss. Energy prices quickly chased equities lower. After stocks recovered later in the day, energy prices also stabilized and recouped their losses.

Energy commodities became coupled with equity prices on Tuesday when markets in Asia and the U.S. collapsed on signs that the Chinese economy might be slowing, according to Ed Meir, energy analyst at Man Financial. Energy prices will likely continue to be affected by stocks through next week, Meir wrote in a report.

News about growth or slowdowns in the global economy tends to have a large impact on commodity prices, because economies use commodities to build and expand. China is a major trading partner with the U.S., and an economic slowdown there would quickly be felt by U.S. markets.

Energy has largely been moving independently of equity prices throughout this winter heating season. Instead, energy has been trading on short-term news about weather, fuel inventories and geopolitical issues.