- Oil prices were 4% higher on Wednesday, as conflict in the Middle East continued to escalate. - U.S. forces carried out their 11th consecutive evening of strikes on Iran overnight. - The Strait of Hormuz, key to the shipping of oil, remains a sticking point in negotiations between the two sides. Oil prices were 4% higher on Wednesday morning following the 11th consecutive round of U.S. strikes against Iran overnight, as Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Strait of Hormuz remains a sticking point between the two sides. Shortly after 4 a.m. ET, global benchmark Brent crude futures for July delivery were almost 4% higher at $94.23. Front-month U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 3.8% to trade at $87.46. At the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' meeting in the Philippines on Wednesday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington remained committed to diplomacy, but accused Tehran of violating the two sides' agreement over the Strait of Hormuz. "The problem we're having right now is that they're not serious about talks," he said. "If they're serious, we're serious. If they're not, then we will do what is necessary to protect our interests and also the interests of our allies." Tuesday saw the U.S. Central Command carry out its eleventh consecutive night of strikes against Iran. Centcom forces targeted Iranian military operations centers, maritime capabilities, aircraft hangars, drone storage facilities, and military logistics infrastructure. The military unit said the strikes had been completed to "further degrade Iran's ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz." Rubio said Wednesday that the strait — a critical shipping route for oil and other vital commodities — remains a sticking point in bilateral talks, alleging that Iran "demands the right" to control the waterway. Allowing this to happen would set "a very dangerous precedent" for the world, he added. "With no breakthroughs regarding Iran, the market focus returned to inflation over the last 24 hours, as Brent crude closed above $90/bbl for the first time in over a month, reviving fears about a wider stagflationary shock. And this morning we've seen a further rise above $92/bbl, so there's little sign of oil prices easing as the U.S. confirmed overnight they'd completed an 11th consecutive evening of strikes against Iran," Deutsche Bank's Jim Reid said in a note on Wednesday morning. As energy prices continued to climb, investor bets on hawkish Federal Reserve policy measures mounted. "The probability of a July hike was back up to 26% by [Tuesday's] close, the highest since last week's downside surprise in the U.S. CPI print," Reid wrote on Wednesday. "It was at 45% the day before CPI and as low as 10% the day after." As of Wednesday morning, money markets were pricing in a 24.1% chance of a rate hike from the Fed this month, and a 69% chance of at least a quarter-point hike in September, according to the CME's FedWatch tool. Analysts at ING said in a note released on Wednesday morning that there were "mounting supply risks" in energy markets, as hopes for a temporary ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran faded. "The disruptions facing the market don't end in the Middle East. In the Black Sea, Russia's CPC terminal has stopped receiving oil from Kazakhstan, with loadings suspended following ongoing attacks on tankers," they noted. "The longer the suspension drags on, the greater the likelihood that Kazakhstan will be forced to curb upstream production. Volumes shipped from the CPC terminal are significant, with around 1.7m b/d loaded in June."
- Oil prices were 4% higher on Wednesday, as conflict in the Middle East continued to escalate. - U.S. forces carried out their 11th consecutive evening of strikes on Iran overnight. - The Strait of Hormuz, key to the shipping of oil, remains a sticking point in negotiations betw…
See this event through different lenses
Compare how Western, Iranian, Israeli, Global South, and Pro-Peace perspectives frame this event.
Compare PerspectivesLoading notes...
US President Donald Trump stated on July 13 and July 22 that the United States was considering strikes on an Iranian underground facility referred to as Pickaxe Mountain. These remarks were made during an ongoing US-Iran conflict that began February 28, involving reported US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites and Iranian actions in the Strait of Hormuz.
Some details, including specific targets and outcomes, remain unverified.
Listen to this article in summarized format Brent crude futures were up $4.04 or 4.44% at $95.05 a barrel after hitting a session high of $95.24. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude climbed $3.65, or 4.33%, to $87.99. Both benchmarks touched their highest levels since June 11.
The U.S. military said it carried out an 11th consecutive night of attacks on Iran. The U.S. attacks came a short while after the Kuwaiti army said its air defences were intercepting Iranian drones. As well as the renewed conflict over control of the Strait of Hormuz, the Iran-aligned Houthis have opened a new front in the war by threatening to target vessels carrying Saudi oil in the Bab el-Mandeb strait and announced a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia.
"The energy market now has the dual-strait worry, with the Bab el-Mandeb Strait looking like it could join the Strait of Hormuz as a hot spot, as traders closely watch shipping numbers in the Red Sea," said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.
Bab el-Mandeb at the southern entrance to the Red Sea has become an increasingly important route for Saudi Arabian crude exports as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply again since a ceasefire between the United States and Iran collapsed earlier this month.
Three oil tankers loaded with Saudi crude for China and India made U-turns in the Red Sea on Tuesday, heading towards the Suez Canal rather than braving the Yemeni coast. "The (Houthi) threat has led tankers to divert which could further pressure the physical market and Saudi exports, contributing to push prices to the upside," said Frank Walbaum, market analyst at trading platform Naga.
com. In response to the Houthi warnings, Asian refiners are seeking to ship crude oil from Saudi Arabia's Red Sea port of Yanbu through the Suez Canal and around Africa. While global oil stockpiles have drawn amid the conflict, the latest U.S. data is showing some building of inventories.
Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed that U.S. crude and distillate inventories rose last week, while gasoline stockpiles fell, market sources said. The inventory data comes ahead of official figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday.
(You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel) (What's moving Sensex and Nifty Track latest market news, stock tips, Budget 2025, Share Market on Budget 2025 and expert advice, on ETMarkets. Also, ETMarkets.com is now on Telegram. For fastest news alerts on financial markets, investment strategies and stocks alerts, subscribe to our Telegram feeds .
) Subscribe to ET Prime and read the Economic Times ePaper Online.and Sensex Today. Top Trending Stocks: SBI Share Price, Axis Bank Share Price, HDFC Bank Share Price, Infosys Share Price, Wipro Share Price, NTPC Share Price (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel) (What's moving Sensex and Nifty Track latest market news, stock tips, Budget 2025, Share Market on Budget 2025 and expert advice, on ETMarkets.
Also, ETMarkets.com is now on Telegram. For fastest news alerts on financial markets, investment strategies and stocks alerts, subscribe to our Telegram feeds .) Subscribe to ET Prime and read the Economic Times ePaper Online.and Sensex Today.
Oil prices rose to a near six-week high on Wednesday, with Brent crude surpassing $95 a barrel, on mounting concerns about disruptions to Middle Eastern supply routes because of escalating hostilities between the U.S. and Iran and threats to shipping by the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen.
Brent crude futures were up $3.82, or 4.2%, at $94.83 a barrel at 0938 GMT after hitting a session high of $95.24. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude climbed $3.65, or 4.33%, to $87.99. Both benchmarks touched their highest levels since June 11. The U.
S. military said it carried out an 11th consecutive night of attacks on Iran. The U.S. attacks came a short while after the Kuwaiti army said its air defences were intercepting Iranian drones. As well as the renewed conflict over control of the Strait of Hormuz, the Iran-aligned Houthis have opened a new front in the war by threatening to target vessels carrying Saudi oil in the Bab el-Mandeb strait and announced a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia.
"The energy market now has the dual-strait worry, with the Bab el-Mandeb Strait looking like it could join the Strait of Hormuz as a hot spot, as traders closely watch shipping numbers in the Red Sea," said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.
Bab el-Mandeb at the southern entrance to the Red Sea has become an increasingly important route for Saudi Arabian crude exports as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply again since a ceasefire between the United States and Iran collapsed earlier this month.
Three oil tankers loaded with Saudi crude for China and India made U-turns in the Red Sea on Tuesday, heading towards the Suez Canal rather than braving the Yemeni coast. "The (Houthi) threat has led tankers to divert which could further pressure the physical market and Saudi exports, contributing to push prices to the upside," said Frank Walbaum, market analyst at trading platform Naga.
com. In response to the Houthi warnings, Asian refiners are seeking to ship crude oil from Saudi Arabia's Red Sea port of Yanbu through the Suez Canal and around Africa. While global oil stockpiles have drawn amid the conflict, the latest U.S. data is showing some building of inventories.
Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed that U.S. crude and distillate inventories rose last week, while gasoline stockpiles fell, market sources said. The inventory data comes ahead of official figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday.
(You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel) (What's moving Sensex and Nifty Track latest market news, stock tips, Budget 2025, Share Market on Budget 2025 and expert advice, on ETMarkets. Also, ETMarkets.com is now on Telegram. For fastest news alerts on financial markets, investment strategies and stocks alerts, subscribe to our Telegram feeds .
) Subscribe to ET Prime and read the Economic Times ePaper Online.and Sensex Today. Top Trending Stocks: SBI Share Price, Axis Bank Share Price, HDFC Bank Share Price, Infosys Share Price, Wipro Share Price, NTPC Share Price (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel) (What's moving Sensex and Nifty Track latest market news, stock tips, Budget 2025, Share Market on Budget 2025 and expert advice, on ETMarkets.
Also, ETMarkets.com is now on Telegram. For fastest news alerts on financial markets, investment strategies and stocks alerts, subscribe to our Telegram feeds .) Subscribe to ET Prime and read the Economic Times ePaper Online.and Sensex Today.
Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters stated that any US strike on Iranian nuclear facilities would be treated as an escalation, resulting in attacks on US and allied interests across the region. The statement references a June 18 memorandum of understanding that ended an earlier conflict and notes subsequent US strikes beginning July 8, which the US Central Command attributed to Iranian interference with shipping in the Strait of Hormuz while Iran described them as violations prompting its own responses.