Dec 11 (Reuters) – Oil rose for a second straight session on Thursday after the U.S. seized a sanctioned oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast, escalating tensions between the two countries and raising concern over further supply disruptions.
Brent crude futures rose 27 cents, or 0.4%, to $62.48 a barrel by 0101 GMT, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $58.79 a barrel, up 33 cents, or 0.6%.
WTI crude oil is trading higher after news that the U.S. seized an oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast, IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said in a note, adding that reports of Ukraine striking a vessel from Russia’s shadow fleet also lent support.
“These developments are likely to keep crude oil above our key $55 support level into year-end, barring an unexpected peace deal in Ukraine,” Sycamore said.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday, “we’ve just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, large tanker, very large, largest one ever, actually, and other things are happening.”
Trump administration officials did not name the vessel. British maritime risk management group Vanguard said the tanker Skipper was believed to have been seized off Venezuela.
Traders and industry sources said Asian buyers are demanding steep discounts on Venezuelan crude, pressured by a surge of sanctioned oil from Russia and Iran and heightened loading risks in the South American country as the U.S. boosts its military presence in the Caribbean.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian sea drones hit and disabled a tanker involved in trading Russian oil as it sailed through Ukraine’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea.
Investors remain focused on developments in Ukraine peace talks. The leaders of Britain, France and Germany held a call with Trump to discuss Washington’s latest peace efforts to end the war in Ukraine, in what they said was a “critical moment” in the process.
On the U.S. policy front, a sharply divided Federal Reserve cut interest rates. Lower rates can reduce consumer borrowing costs and boost economic growth and oil demand.
(Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom Hogue)
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