espite a large reported increase in overall oil inventories, oil prices were higher, yesterday. Those gains are being maintained this morning, as geopolitical tensions and supply issues that never seem to fully recede support prices. The Houston Ship Channel oil spill may have more of an impact on inventories in the very short-term, but it still represents a bullish element. Oil output outages in Libya and Nigeria continue to add price strength to the Brent market, and the Ukraine affair is the latest geopolitical wrinkle.