Ammon News - Oil prices rose on Thursday following reports that the U.S. was preparing new sanctions on Russian oil if Moscow does not agree to a Ukraine peace deal, as market participants assessed the supply risks posed by a blockade of Venezuelan oil tankers.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was up 44 cents, or 0.79%, at $56.38 per barrel at 0256 GMT, paring some gains after initially rising more than a dollar after the market opened. Brent crude rose 42 cents or 0.7% to $60.10 per barrel.

On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that the U.S. is preparing another round of sanctions on Russia's energy sector in case Moscow doesn't agree to a peace deal with Ukraine, citing people familiar with the matter. A White House official told Reuters President Donald Trump had not made any decisions on Russian sanctions.

Venezuelan crude makes up around 1% of global supplies. It sends most of that to China, but market sources say weak demand and a surfeit of crude in floating storage in Asia are keeping the market impact on the world's biggest importer limited. Reuters