Brent crude rose on Wednesday, touching a seven-week high after the European Union reached a preliminary agreement to ban imports of Iranian crude, escalating tensions in the West’s standoff with Tehran that has gripped oil markets for weeks.
European diplomats said they had a preliminary agreement but had yet to decide when an embargo would be put in place. The news sent Brent crude up nearly $2 a barrel.
A senior Iranian official responded that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries nation already has alternative outlets available to maintain its 2.3 million barrels per day of oil exports, including sending more crude to China, the world’s No. 2 consumer.
