Crude-oil futures were becalmed Tuesday, with trading volumes yet to recover from the Presidents Day holiday.
Many market makers were also absent at an industry event in London.
Crude for April delivery was up just 3 cents at $109.15 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. U.S. crude-oil futures were up 60 cents at $100.90 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
The cold weather in the U.S. continues to underpin WTI crude-oil futures, with demand for products remaining high.
U.S. distillate stocks are 22% below their usual level for this time of year, while East Coast heating oil stocks are 47% below their five-year average, according to analysts at Commerzbank.
This has lifted both distillate and Brent refining margins in Europe, "which if sustained, could lift local demand for Brent," Morgan Stanley said in a note.
Brent prices are also supported by outages in the Buzzard oil field in the North Sea, which have delayed cargoes for Forties crude for February, and reports of ongoing disruption to Libyan oil production and an assault by rebel soldiers on the South Sudanese oil town of Malakal.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and Iran have voiced caution over the prospect of a deal to curb Tehran's nuclear program, reducing chances of a diplomatic breakthrough that could pave the way for Iranian crude to return to global markets.
Monday's U.S. holiday means the two main markers for the oil markets--the weekly oil inventory report from the American Petroleum Institute and the Energy Information Administration's weekly petroleum report--have both been put back a day, to Wednesday and Thursday respectively.
The ICE's gas oil contract for March delivery was up $4.75 at $928.75 a metric ton, while Nymex reformulated gasoline blendstock for March--the benchmark gasoline contract--was up 66 points at $2.8199 a gallon.
