Crude Climbs as US-Iran Strikes Renew Fears Over Hormuz Shipping, RBC Says

Crude prices surged after fresh military strikes between the US and Iran threatened to dismantle a fragile maritime truce in the Persian Gulf, raising fears of renewed supply disruptions, RBC Capital Markets strategists said in a note on Wednesday. RBC analysts said Brent crude rose after President Trump declared that the ceasefire between the US and Iran was over, following a new round of Iranian attacks on Saudi and Qatari vessels and subsequent US retaliatory strikes. The latest escalation marks a more serious deterioration than previous flare-ups following the memorandum of understanding that had helped ease tensions in the Gulf. Iranian drone and missile strikes also targeted Kuwait and Bahrain following US military action, raising concerns that the conflict could once again disrupt energy flows from one of the world's most important oil-exporting regions. RBC said the key question is whether these attacks will trigger a more serious resumption of fighting or be followed by another tenuous truce. The bank said that investors are closely watching whether the US follows through on threats to reinstate a naval blockade of Iran, a move that would reverse one of the most.