US heating oil prices hovered near $4.60 per gallon, remaining close to the record high of $4.73 touched on September 2 and about 98% higher than a year earlier amid concerns over increasingly tight supplies. EIA data showed that distillate fuel stocks rose by 796 thousand barrels in the week ended August 28 but remained 14% below the five-year average for this time of year. This comes as demand is expected to rise as agricultural states enter their harvest and planting seasons, while the approaching winter heating season could put further pressure on distillate supplies. Reflecting the market’s tightness, average US diesel prices have reached a record high. The market has remained constrained by escalating tensions in the Middle East, as the US and Iran continued to exchange fire, while ongoing disruptions to Russian refining capacity and an extended Russian diesel export ban further limited global distillate supplies.