Oil Prices Climb on US Sanctions, OPEC+ Cuts Fuel Supply Fears

Oil prices rose in early Asian trading Friday, heading for a second straight week of gains as fresh U.S. sanctions on Iran and new OPEC+ output cuts fueled concerns over tightening global supply.

Brent crude futures gained 0.6% to $72.40 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 0.6% to $68.52 by 0026 GMT. Both benchmarks are poised to climb about 2% this week—marking their largest weekly gains since early 2025.

The U.S. Treasury introduced new Iran-related sanctions on Thursday, targeting an independent Chinese refiner and other entities involved in moving Iranian crude to China. This marked Washington’s fourth round of sanctions since February, when President Donald Trump renewed his "maximum pressure" campaign aimed at cutting Iran’s oil exports to zero.

Analysts at ANZ Bank expect a potential reduction of 1 million barrels per day (bpd) in Iranian oil exports. Vessel tracker Kpler estimated Iran’s February exports at over 1.8 million bpd but warned that data could be revised due to vessels masking their activities to avoid detection.

Oil prices also found support from a new OPEC+ plan requiring seven members to cut output further. These monthly reductions, ranging from 189,000 bpd to 435,000 bpd, will continue through June 2026. The move is designed to offset previous overproduction and counterbalance an upcoming 138,000 bpd supply increase from April by eight OPEC+ members.

The coordinated actions from OPEC+ and mounting geopolitical tensions are reinforcing bullish sentiment in the oil market, keeping investors alert to potential supply shocks amid ongoing global uncertainties.