Mubasher: Oil prices edged up on Tuesday, driven by concerns about a potential drop in Venezuela’s output following a controversial presidential election and US tough demands to Iran which would trim the Persian Gulf country’s crude exports.

US Nymex crude stood at $72.45 per barrel (pb) earlier on Tuesday, almost 0.3% higher its last traded price, while global benchmark Brent crude reached $79.37 pb, 0.2% higher than its last settlement, after breaking through a three-year-and-a-half high of $80 pb.

With tightening oil stocks and the looming US sanctions on Venezuela which would exacerbate the country’s worsening economic situation “falling Venezuelan production” is expected to continue, Mitsubishi Corp oil risk manager in Tokyo Tony Nunan told Reuters.

“Combined with expectations for falling Iranian production as the US pressures allies to reduce their imports, this will push crude oil prices up to $80 a barrel and we think it can go higher,” he added.

On Monday, Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro faced international criticism after being re-elected in a vote held in the weekend, while his critics regarded the vote as a sham reinforcing autocratic rule in the crisis-stricken oil exporter.

Meanwhile, the US is actively eyeing oil sanctions on Venezuela, where production shed a third in two years, hitting the lowest level in decades.

In addition, the Trump administration urged Iran to affect sweeping changes to relinquish its nuclear programme and withdraw from the Syrian civil war.

It is noteworthy that the US-China agreement on Monday to drop their tariff threats and work on a more inclusive trade deal added to the upward trend in the global oil markets.

By 7:51am GMT, Nymex crudes jumped 0.54% to $72.63 pb, while Brent futures rose 0.69% to $79.77 pb.