Iran is sending senior oil officials to...

Iran is sending senior oil officials to talk to Japanese customers in the hope of averting any compliance with the U.S. call for an embargo on Iranian oil, oil industry sources report. They said the visit by officials from the National Iranian Oil Co., beginning today, had not been expected. Last week, Japan officially turned down a U.S. request to cooperate in economic sanctions, including an oil embargo, against Iran. But the Ministry of International Trade and Industry asked Japanese oil companies not to increase purchases from Iran under long-term contracts and not to buy Iranian oil on the spot market, Japanese trading-house sources said.