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Oil prices rose on Wednesday amid fears of a potential supply shock after the United States banned Russian oil imports and amid signs that some buyers are already avoiding them.
Brent crude futures rose $2.91, or 2.27 percent, to $130.89 a barrel, after jumping 3.9 percent the previous day.
US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose $2.34, or 1.89%, to $126.04 a barrel, after also rising 3.6 percent on Tuesday.
US President Joe Biden on Tuesday imposed an immediate ban on Russian oil and other energy imports, and Britain said it would phase out Russian oil imports until the end of 2022 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Shell said it would stop buying Russian crude and phase out its activities in the Russian hydrocarbon sector, becoming one of the first major Western oil companies to completely end its activities in Russia.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs estimated that more than half of Russian oil exported from ports had not been sold, while JP Morgan estimated that about 70 percent of Russian seaborne oil was having difficulty finding buyers.
Oil prices have risen more than 30% since Russia, the world’s second-largest crude exporter, launched what it called a “special operation” in Ukraine. Analysts said fears of further disruptions to oil supplies amid an escalation of sanctions on Moscow boosted the buying
On Monday, oil prices jumped to their highest level since July 2008, with Brent crude reaching $139.13 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate crude reaching $130.50.
