World oil prices have set a fresh post-Iraq war high amid worries over the impact on US oil inventories of another Arctic weather front.
US light crude futures traded over $35 a barrel today for the first time since the approach to the invasion of Iraq.
Private forecaster Meteorlogix said temperatures in the US Northeast, a big heating oil centre, would slide 15-20 degrees Fahrenheit below normal from Wednesday.
"Very high demand will return as Arctic air reinvades the region during mid-week," said Meteorlogix. Lower-than-normal temperatures were expected for at least the next two weeks, it added.
The latest price increase brought an appeal from OPEC for stability. "We are calling on all parties involved in the oil markets to take an initiative to keep prices stable in the position that represents producers and consumers," said Mr Purnomo Yusgiantoro, Indonesia's oil minister.
Mr Purnomo reiterated that OPEC was pumping more than formal output limits in a bid to restrain prices but said producers would not reconsider official policy on supply quotas until a February 10 meeting.
OPEC targets a $22-$28 a barrel range for a basket of its crudes that was last valued at $30.88.
Qatar's Oil Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah said today that OPEC was still concerned about an overhang in crude supplies in the second quarter when oil demand traditionally falls at the end of the northern hemisphere winter.
The US cold spell, bolstering demand for heating fuels, already has cut US crude stocks to their lowest level since 1975.