Oil prices held steady on Wednesday.
Prices were supported by a report of rising U.S. crude inventories as well as the introduction of sanctions against Iran.
Oil prices held steady on Wednesday, supported by a report of rising U.S. crude inventories as well as the introduction of sanctions against Iran.
Front-month U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were at $69.28 per barrel at 0408 GMT, up 11 cents from their last settlement.
Brent crude oil futures were at $74.61 per barrel, down 4 cents from their last close.
Both futures contracts have risen during the previous two sessions.
The U.S. government introduced a raft of new sanctions against Iran on Tuesday, targeting Iran's purchases of U.S. dollars – in which oil is traded – metals trading, coal, industrial software and its auto sector.
From November, Washington will also target Iran's petroleum sector. Iran is the third-largest producer among the members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). It shipped out almost 3 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude in September, equivalent to around 3 percent of global demand.
Official U.S. fuel storage data is due to be released later on Wednesday by the Energy Information Administration.
On the demand side, China's July crude oil imports recovered slightly in July after falling for the previous two months, but were still among the lowest this year due to a drop-off in demand from the country's smaller independent, or "teapot", refineries.
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