AUGUSTA (AP) – The average price of heating oil in Maine is holding steady after inching upward for two consecutive weeks.

In its weekly survey, the state energy office said Monday the average cash price statewide was $2.38 a gallon, the same as last week. Actual prices ranged from a low of $2.02 in southwestern Maine to a high of $2.60 in the eastern part of the state.

John Kerry of the Office of Energy Independence and Security says oil prices seem to be reacting to instability in the Middle East and a dispute over natural gas supplies between Ukraine and Russia. He also says supply cuts from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries appear to be gaining traction.