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**smallengineguy** · 12-19-2006, 08:13 PM

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Mild weather was expected to linger in most of the United States until at least early January, continuing a prolonged spell of balmy conditions that has cut deeply into heating demand, government and private forecasters said on Tuesday.
"We see no end at this point to the moderate weather pattern that virtually all of North America is experiencing," said Mike Palmerino of DTN Meteorlogix. "It is very unlikely anyone in the Northeast is going to get a white Christmas."
The National Weather Service said Tuesday that almost all of the United States, with the exception of parts of southern Texas, would have normal or above normal temperatures for the next two weeks.
The bulk of the above normal temperatures were seen concentrated over the big heating markets of the Midwest and Northeast, the NWS said.
"This is classic El Nino," DTN's Palmerino said, referring to the warming of Pacific Ocean waters that can affect weather around the world.
Matt Rogers of private forecaster EarthSat, said the current mild pattern, which has lingered for almost three weeks already, could last for up to three more.
"Winter patterns like this have the ability to last 4 to 6 weeks," Rogers said.
He added that, despite the warm start, it was still too early to declare winter a dud.
"The energy markets have a tendency to call winter quits by January, but there have been years when we get a late season cold," Rogers said.