Oil Prices Surge on Tanker Attacks and Stalled Ceasefire Talks

Oil prices surged on Friday as tanker attacks and stalled ceasefire talks between the US and Iran drove up demand. Brent futures settled at $88.52 a barrel, up $1.45 or 1.67%, while US West Texas Intermediate crude finished at $82.40, up $1.15 or 1.42%. The rally comes ahead of a weekend, with Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, saying 'We're getting a rally going into the weekend after new attacks on tankers and lack of progress on a cease-fire agreement.'

The Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of global supply passes, saw traffic slow below its monthly average as the US and Iran made claims over control. Two vessels from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company were attacked while transiting the strait, with Phil Flynn, senior analyst for Price Futures Group, saying 'That's the headline that pushed up prices: Tankers attacked.'

Crude oil exports from Russia's Sheskharis terminal at the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk were suspended following a drone attack, adding to disruptions in the region. Norbert Rucker, head of economics and next generation research at Julius Baer, cautioned that 'This week's reports by the IEA and EIA were quite revealing. Storage is holding up much better than feared, which should pull oil prices lower.'