Oil price gains after US interception of Venezuelan oil tanker over weekend

Oil prices gained on Monday in early Asian trading hours after the U.S. intercepted a Venezuelan oil tanker over the weekend.

The US is also pursuing another tanker, officials told Reuters on Sunday, in what would be the third such operation in less than two weeks if it succeeds.

US West Texas Intermediate crude was up 34 cents, or 0.6%, at $56.86 per barrel as of GMT 2323.

Meanwhile, Asian share markets gained on Monday tracking tech-driven gains on Wall Street, while the yen was at all-time lows against the euro and Swiss franc on the back of higher interest rates at home doing nothing to deter speculative sellers.

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