Oil Prices Rise as Trump Threatens Sanctions on Iran's Trading Partners
Oil prices rose on Friday after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose economic sanctions on Iran's trading partners, raising concerns about tighter supply in the coming weeks.
The Brent benchmark settled at $94.39 a barrel, up 61 cents or 0.65 percent, while US West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 settled at $87.06 a barrel, up 23 cents or 0.26 percent.
John Kilduff, partner with Again Capital, said 'Sanctions have been the only thing to bring Iran to heel.'
Crispus Nyaga, research analyst at Empire FX, noted that Iranian exports are already heavily constrained by the US naval blockade, but warned that an increase in shipping incidents and retaliation against economic sanctions could exacerbate the situation.
However, Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group, said 'Hormuz is still a problem, but it is no longer the only story' as pipelines, shuttles, US shale, and unconstrained UAE supplies are adding barrels to the market.