Oil Falls as Supply Concerns Dissipate Due to Russia Sanctions

Oil prices fell on Wednesday from seven-year highs hit the previous day as it became clear that the first wave of US and European sanctions against Russia was unlikely to disrupt oil supplies.

Brent crude fell 59 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $96.25 a barrel after hitting $99.50 on Tuesday, its highest since September 2014.

US West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 76 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $91.15 a barrel, after reaching $96 on Tuesday.

Prices jumped on Tuesday on fears that Western sanctions against Russia would hit energy supplies over its dispatch of troops to two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine.

Sanctions imposed by the United States, the European Union, Britain, Australia, Canada and Japan focus on the Russian banks and elite while Germany suspended a major gas pipeline project from Russia. But Washington has made clear that the sanctions that have been approved and those that may be imposed will not target oil and gas flows.

The prospect of more Iranian crude returning to the market also pressured oil prices on Wednesday, as Tehran and world powers moved closer to reviving the nuclear deal.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian said on Wednesday that the nuclear talks in Vienna had reached a sensitive and important stage.