NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices are climbing after Iran said it will cut off crude exports to Europe in retaliation for a planned embargo later this year.

Benchmark U.S. crude rose $1 to $101.74 per barrel in New York. Brent crude rose $1.66 to $119.01 per barrel in London.

Stopping Iranian shipments means European refineries will have find new sources of oil sooner than expected. The European Union, which buys about 18 percent of Iran's total crude exports, planned to embargo Iranian oil this summer to pressure the country to abandon its nuclear program.

Meanwhile, U.S. oil supplies fell unexpectedly last week, though the government says demand remains weak.

Retail gasoline prices rose by less than a penny to a national average of $3.52 per gallon.

 

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