Mobil cut its price for a key grade of crude oil.

Mobil Corp. undercut other industry giants in reducing its price for West Texas Intermediate crude to $27.50 a barrel, a reduction of $1.25. Other major oil companies have cut their price to $28 a barrel, while Exxon Corp., the largest in the industry, has held at $29. Despite the cuts, the posted prices of the majors remain well above those of smaller oil companies, some of whom have gone as low as $25.90 for the West Texas oil, the benchmark grade for the industry. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate for February delivery fell 21 cents Tuesday to $25.91 a barrel.