Commodities
Brent Crude Surpasses $100 as Middle East Conflict Intensifies
The price of Brent crude oil broke above $100 a barrel for the first time since May as the conflict in the Middle East intensified.
This is not the first time Brent crude has surpassed $100 a barrel, having done so previously during the US-Israeli war on Iran in March and Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The current price surge has been fueled by attacks on Saudi tankers in the Red Sea by pro-Iranian Houthi rebel forces in Yemen, which could cut off the export of millions of barrels of oil.
Oxford Economics fears that if both the Red Sea and the Strait of Hormuz were effectively closed to traffic, the price of oil could eventually pass $160 a barrel.