WTI Jumps to $70 as U.S. Sanctions Rekindle Supply Concerns

Oil prices jumped early on Thursday as concerns about supply with intensified U.S. sanctions on Iran and Venezuela trumped demand woes and the possibility of peace in Ukraine. As of 10:45 a.m, ET on Thursday, the front-month futures contract of the U.S. benchmark, WTI Crude, was up by more than 2%, trading at $70.09 per barrel, up by 2.14% on the day. The international benchmark, Brent Crude, was up by 1.94% at $73.94. After falling for most of this week, oil prices reversed course on Thursday morning after U.S. President Donald Trump canceled…