"Weather still seems to be the primary factor supporting prices and although some forecasters are calling for a moderation in temperatures in the second half of the month, [the National Weather Service] still has below-normal temperatures out through Feb. 19th," John Kilduff, an analyst at Fimat USA, wrote in a research note.

"Several weather forecasters are calling temperatures this week to be the coldest of the winter season, with heating demand expected to be 21% above normal this week after being 18% above last week," he said.

Crude for March delivery was up 1.3%, or 76 cents, at $59.50 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after reaching a high of $59.99. On Monday, the contract rallied to $59.95 early in the day, then retreated to close lower for the session.

Heating oil, most of which is used in the Northeast, saw its March contract rise to $1.70 a gallon, up 2.44 cents. The price of the contract peaked at $1.718 on Monday to mark its highest intraday price since Dec. 26.

Natural gas for March delivery was down 4.4 cents at $7.59 per million British thermal units following a gain of 2.1% on Monday.

And rounding out the energy action, March reformulated gasoline gained 1.51 cents to stand at $1.575 a gallon.

"The East will have to endure more brutal cold today," forecaster AccuWeather said in its latest forecast.

The northeastern regions of the U.S. were covered with arctic air on Monday, creating some of the coldest temperatures in several years. Biting winds caused temperatures to remain well below zero, with reports of temperatures as low as 40 degrees below zero in parts of Minnesota.