Crude oil jumps to $94.5 on US-Iran escalation
Crude oil rose to $94.5 a barrel on Wednesday, the highest since June 3, amid escalating US-Iran tensions. US forces said they destroyed five Iranian tankers; Iran warned ships near Kuwaiti and Bahraini ports.
5 a barrel on Wednesday, the highest since June 3, as US-Iran tensions intensified and Chinese oil demand strengthened. The US military said it destroyed five Iranian tankers carrying crude after attempts to strike a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles. Iran said it attacked two American vessels and eight oil tankers in the Gulf, and warned shipping crews near Kuwaiti and Bahraini ports to abandon their vessels. The escalation has raised concern about further disruption to global oil supplies, especially around the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran-backed Houthi militants also hit energy infrastructure in southern Saudi Arabia, including the 400,000-barrel-a-day Jazan refinery. Recovering Chinese oil demand is also supporting prices for African, Canadian and Latin American crude as disruptions around Hormuz push refiners to look for alternative supplies from farther markets.