Commodities
US-Iran Tensions Spark Oil Price Spike Amid Supply Fears
Oil prices surged by nearly 4% to a one-week high on Tuesday as fresh US-Iran fighting stoked supply fears. The uptick in tensions between the two nations raised concerns about prolonged disruptions to energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Brent futures rose $3.44, or 3.8%, to $93.93 a barrel at 1:10 p.m. EDT (1710 GMT), while US West Texas Intermediate crude rose $3.72, or 4.3%, to $89.48.
Analysts estimated that energy firms pulled 0.8 million barrels of crude from storage during the week ended August 28, which would be the first decline in five weeks and compares with an increase of 2.4 million barrels in the same week last year.