Oil Prices Surge as Tanker Attacks and Iran Tensions Escalate

Crude oil prices surged on Friday, nearing $90 per barrel due to tanker attacks and stalled peace talks between the US and Iran. Brent futures settled at $88.52 a barrel, up $1.45 or 1.67%, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures finished at $82.40, up $1.15 or 1.42%. These gains bring the weekly increase to 6.0% for Brent and 5.4% for WTI.

Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, attributed the price rally to new attacks on tankers and a lack of progress in cease-fire talks. He warned that if traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains constrained, a 'day of reckoning' may come, with crude oil prices potentially reaching $80 per barrel.

However, not all analysts agree that the price increases are justified. Norbert Rucker, head of economics and next generation research at Julius Baer, noted that storage is holding up better than feared, which should pull oil prices lower.