Russia's Deputy Prime Minister, Alexander Novak, has said Moscow could cut off the flow of natural gas through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline which links the country to Germany, in retaliation for sanctions imposed on its economy. This latest threat comes as the United States is considering banning purchases of Russian oil. Novak warned such a move could push prices as high as $300 dollars a barrel. In early trading on Tuesday, the international benchmark Brent Crude was trading around $125.
