US moves forward with Iran oil sanctions

Updated: 13:56, Saturday March 31, 2012

US President Barack Obama has approved sanctions that will target Iran's oil exports.

The White House said it had determined there was enough non-Iranian oil supply worldwide to move forward with sanctions passed by Congress last year that will target financial institutions that do business with Iran's central bank, which channels funds involved in its oil exports.

The US does not import Iranian oil under previous sanctions, but the move will force other countries that do trade with Iran to give up that trade or face sanctions.

'There currently appears to be sufficient supply of non-Iranian oil to permit foreign countries to significantly reduce their import of Iranian oil,' the White House said in a statement, pointing to estimates of demand as well as global oil inventories.

The new sanctions are set to go into place on June 28