WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Oil prices climbed higher on Friday following the U.S. government imposing new sanctions on Iran's crude exports. However, the upside was limited due to concerns about the outlook for demand from China, and the U.S.-China spat, as well as the Trump administration's tariff threats.
A stronger dollar also limited oil's gains.
On Thursday, the Trump imposed fresh sanctions against Iran, targeting firms, ships and individuals allegedly involved in shipping Iranian oil to China.
However, the sanctions package stopped short of the 'maximum pressure' campaign his administration had pledged.
West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March settled higher by $0.39 or about 0.5% at $71.00 a barrel. WTI crude futures shed nearly 2% in the week.
Brent crude futures were up $0.36 or 0.48% at $74.65 a barrel a little while ago.
Concerns about growth amid U.S.-China trade tensions, and likely tariffs on Canada, Mexico and the EU sometime soon, raised uncertainty about the outlook for oil demand.
Also, U.S. President Donald Trump's call for increased oil output, and the OPEC+'s decision to gradually rise oil output from April have raised prospects of excess supply in the market.
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