Oil prices rose following new attacks on Saudi Arabia's energy and civil infrastructure and on the Strait of Hormuz
Oil prices climbed nearly 3% on Monday following fresh attacks on Saudi Arabia's energy and civil infrastructure and Iranian attacks on ships in the Gulf.
Supply concerns intensified after the shutdown of the key East-West Saudi oil pipeline. The closure of the pipeline threatens up to 4% of the global oil supply.
Brent crude futures rose $2.93 (or 2.8%) to $107.54 per barrel at 10:00 a.m. Turkish time (07:00 GMT). WTI crude futures gained $2.88 (or 2.9%) per barrel, reaching $102.93.
With the escalation of attacks on Saudi Arabia's energy infrastructure, the severity of potential damage and the duration of the pipeline's outage are critical factors.
The shutdown of this pipeline, which allows Saudi Arabia to route exports without using the Strait of Hormuz, threatens up to 4% of the global oil supply.
According to sources, with the pipeline out of service, there is only enough inventory at the Red Sea port of Yanbu to cover five to seven days of exports.
Additionally, reports indicate that homes and a mosque were damaged in an attack attributed to the Houthis. The Houthis also announced that they had struck a Saudi military base in a neighboring region.
On Friday, the Houthis reached the strategic island of Perim in a move to tighten their control over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, another critical oil transit route that handles 4% to 5% of global supply.
Due to the resulting disruptions, oil prices rose by 8% last week, climbing above the $100 mark for the first time since July.
Oman announced the postponement of a meeting scheduled for Monday in the country between Gulf states and Iran to discuss the Strait of Hormuz.
Since the collapse of the interim agreement in June, no peace talks have taken place regarding the war initiated by the US and Israel.
Related Articles
Oil prices rose as attacks, and the threat of further attacks, on Saudi energy infrastructure heightened supply concerns
Oil prices retreated amid a rise in US inventories, even as supply disruptions in the Middle East remained in focus
Oil prices rise weekly despite recent fall, driven by supply tightness
