Oil rose for a third day as the U.S. froze assets of four companies connected with Iran, heightening tensions with OPEC’s second largest crude producer. Futures increased as much as 1.7 percent as the Treasury Department announced the restrictions on the companies and one individual with links to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The U.S. has accused the Guard of developing weapons of mass destruction and supporting terrorism.
“It’s an escalation, but we’ve been escalating in baby steps for a long time,” said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research in Winchester, Massachusetts. “What the Iranians are more worried about is the degree of unrest internally, which is not affected by these sanctions.” Crude oil for March delivery rose $1.05, or 1.4 percent, to $74.80 a barrel at 2:06 p.m. on New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures have lost 5.8 percent this year.
The U.S. has been trying to rally reluctant countries, especially China, to sanction Iran as the government in Tehran resists pressure to scale back its uranium enrichment work. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has signaled the U.S. wants to target the Revolutionary Guard, an elite military branch with extensive business interests. Iran already is subject to United Nations Security Council restrictions, including a 2007 resolution freezing assets and banning travel for some Revolutionary Guard-affiliated companies and officials. The Iranian government maintains that its nuclear development work is a legitimate effort to build a civilian power industry.....
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