Saudi Pipeline Outage Sends Oil Prices Soaring

Oil prices surged more than 2% on Tuesday after attacks on Saudi Arabian energy infrastructure left the kingdom's East-West pipeline offline, raising fears that damage to energy infrastructure and transport routes could take longer to repair.

The Brent crude futures rose $2.5, or 2.37%, to $108.18 a barrel at 0813 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate futures were up $2.46, or 2.43%, at $103.85 a barrel.

Concerns over oil supplies intensified after Houthi forces in Yemen launched fresh attacks on Saudi Arabia on Monday, while Gulf Arab states postponed planned discussions with Iran.

'Fresh attacks by the Houthis targeting Saudi Arabia may be influencing oil market investors' expectations about the severity and duration of the conflict,' said Hamad Hussain, senior climate and commodities economist at Capital Economics.