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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery added $1.14 to $62.47 on the New York Merc, while Brent for June added $1.18 to $65.85 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $14.10 to WTI, down from a discount of $12.60. Natural gas for May lost eight cents to $3.24. The TSX energy index added 4.57 points to close at 237.15.

Oil prices spiked on concerns about global supply disruptions, after the White House issued fresh sanctions targeting Iran's oil exports, including against a Chinese "teapot" refinery. (Teapots are small, independent refineries in China that rely almost entirely on sanctioned crudes for their feedstock, unlike the much larger state-owned enterprises. As much as 90 per cent of Iranian oil exports are estimated to be handled by teapots.) The sanctions helped offset somewhat bearish U.S. supply data. In its latest weekly data release, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that U.S. crude inventories rose by 515,000 barrels last week. Analysts were predicting an increase of 507,000 barrels.

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