US crude discount to Brent widens as Venezuelan oil flows shift to US markets

If a bigger US surplus is created, those barrels will likely move to Europe or further east, the trader said. North Sea Forties crude, part of the dated Brent basket, was priced at a $1.30 a barrel premium to WTI Aframax cargoes in Europe for early March, analysts at Sparta Commodities said.

They added that such a spread is rarely sustained for long. Brent crude oil's premium to Middle East benchmark Dubai rose on Tuesday to its highest since July, LSEG data showed.

"If China steps back in to buy and Iranian crude is unavailable due to either a blockade or the new sanctions, then any substitute buying in Middle Eastern grades will be more felt in Brent rather than WTI," said John Evans, analyst at PVM Oil Associates.

(Reporting by Georgina McCartney in Houston, Seher Dareen in London; Editing by Liz Hampton, Rod Nickel)