Brent trades at $68.01 per barrel

Oil prices rose on Wednesday amid new U.S. sanctions aimed at curbing Iranian energy exports and more conciliatory remarks from U.S. President Donald Trump regarding trade relations with China.

Washington imposed sanctions on Iranian businessman Seyed Asadollah Emamjomeh, who is active in the liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector, and companies linked to him. According to a statement from the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), Emamjomeh and the sanctioned entities are "responsible for supplying Iranian LNG and crude oil worth hundreds of millions of dollars to foreign markets."

June futures for Brent crude on the London ICE Futures exchange stood at $68.01 a barrel, up $0.57, or 0.85%, from the previous close.

WTI crude futures for June delivery rose $0.56, or 0.88%, to $64.23 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.