Oil price risks are skewed to the upside due to sanctions supply disruptions, said Samantha Dart, co-head of global commodities research at Goldman Sachs. The Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund ETF (XLE) is up 8.

Spot premiums for Middle East crude rose to their highest in more than two years as strong demand from top importers China and India to replace sanction-hit supplies from Russia and Iran drove up prices,

Oil futures settled higher Wednesday, finding support after snapping a three-day winning streak that had been driven in part by wider U.S. sanctions on Russia as well as cold weather in much of the U.