More cold and snow is forecast to hit the East Coast, but oil prices remained steady despite the anticipation of increased demand for heating oil in the coming week. Analysts expect weekly inventory reports to show a drawdown of heating oil supplies. Weakness in the US dollar encouraged some investors to move into oil markets, but concerns about tepid demand in the US and China continued to weigh on oil prices. Crude and heating oil futures contracts on NYMEX stayed relatively flat and the small gains oil made in the market were small enough that they will not be reflected in most retail prices. Today’s average retail heating oil price in the Northeast is unchanged from Monday’s average price.

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