West Texas Intermediate crude advanced for a second day amid speculation its slump to a 16-month low this week was excessive as political risks to supply persist. Brent pared a second weekly drop. Futures increased as much as 0.9 percent in New York . The U.S. will join the European Union in stiffening sanctions on Russia over Ukraine , prompting the government in Moscow to threaten retaliation. U.S. retail sales probably rose in August after stagnating the previous month, according to a Bloomberg survey. Brent futures are down 2.2 percent in London this week. “ Oil prices look to be bottoming now following the rather steep sell-off over the past week,” said Jens Naervig Pedersen, an economist at Danske Bank A/S in Copenhagen, said by e-mail. “Some upside risks prevail due to the re-escalating geopolitical tensions and rising global growth, in particular on the back of a strengthening recovery […]