Oil Prices Set for a Weekly Gain as U.S. Prepares More Sanctions

Crude oil prices were set for their first weekly gain since late November on news that the U.S. was considering additional sanctions against Russia and Iran. The potential of such a move disrupting the supply balance lent upward momentum to prices. The latest report of fresh China stimulus measures meanwhile continued to support the benchmarks despite the lack of details about what the measures would entail specifically. At the time of writing, Brent crude was trading at $73.67 per barrel, with West Texas Intermediate at $70.34 per barrel, after…