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March 15, 2005 1:30 AM, EST

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ight sweet crude oil futures hit a near-record $55.45 in intraday trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange before receding to close at $55.05 a barrel, Bloomberg reported.

And heating-oil futures rose to their highest closing price in more than four months as lingering cold weather in the Northeast increased demand, Bloomberg said.

Heating oil and diesel are both distillate fuels and their prices often track each other in cold-weather months.

Tuesday's closing crude oil price, up a dime from Monday, came a day in advance of an OPEC meeting and prices may have risen on speculation the cartel won’t increase production enough to meet peak gasoline demand, Bloomberg said.

OPEC ministers are scheduled to meet Wednesday in Iran. The Nymex record for light sweet crude oil was $55.67, set last Oct. 25.

Tuesday's price was the highest close since Oct. 26 and prices are 47% higher than a year ago, Bloomberg said.

Heating oil for April delivery gained 1.8 cents to close at $1.554 a gallon on the Nymex, Bloomberg said.

Forecasts showed heating demand is expected to be 7% above normal during the next week with temperatures 2.2 degrees below normal in the Northeast, which consumes most heating oil, Bloomberg said.