SINGAPORE- Oil prices rose on Wednesday, extending the prior day’s gains, as investors weighed a fresh round of US sanctions on Iran, a drop in US crude stocks and a softer tone from President Donald Trump toward the Federal Reserve.
Brent crude futures climbed 55 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $67.99 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was up 54 cents, or 0.9 percent, at $64.21 a barrel.
The US issued new sanctions targeting Iranian liquefied petroleum gas and crude oil shipping magnate Seyed Asadoollah Emamjomeh and his corporate network on Tuesday.
Emamjomeh’s network is responsible for shipping hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian LPG and crude oil to foreign markets, the US Treasury said in a statement.
“The US issued fresh sanctions targeting Iranian energy supplies, which worried markets,” said senior market analyst Priyanka Sachdeva at Phillip Nova.
Both benchmark prices this morning were also backed by hope of positive turnout between the US and China over import tariffs, Sachdeva said.
