Oil prices surged sharply overnight, with a barrel of European reference oil Brent reaching USD 118, the highest level since early 2013.

The price surge is a result of additional US sanctions against Russian oil refineries, spurring market fears that the next round of sanctions will target Russian crude, writes Reuters.

Having since decreased after peaking, Brent costs USD 117.20 against USD 107.87 Wednesday afternoon. US benchmark crude West Texas Intermediate sells concurrently for USD 114.53 against USD 106.01 Wednesday afternoon.

Considerations for energy prices are still deterring the US and the West from imposing direct sanctions on Russian oil.

"They may be saying that, but global financial institutions are doing the heavy lifting and blanket banning anything with Russia written on the documentation," says analyst at OANDA Jeffrey Hale to Reuters.

He projects that oil prices will continue to go up for as long as the restrictions remain on the current level.

At the same time, the Organization for Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies in OPEC+, of which Russia is a part, have opted not to increase crude recovery more than the planned 400,000 barrels a day. According to Bloomberg, their latest session lasted a mere 13 minutes, avoiding any mention of the war in Ukraine.

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