Oil Futures Rise on Middle East Escalation Fears

1509 ET – Crude futures post double-digit weekly gains as the U.S. widens its military strikes against Iranian targets and Iran hits out at neighboring Gulf countries. Added to concerns about escalation is the possibility of Yemen’s Houthis taking action to block shipping through the Red Sea, where Saudi Arabia has been rerouting oil exports with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. “Renewed escalation over the strait’s ‘red line’ with inventories at the lowest levels in recent years and a majority of SPR releases behind us poses significant upside risks to energy prices,” Amarpreet Singh of Barclays says in a note. “As things stand, we think oil markets are still too complacent about the potential fallout for inventories.” WTI settles up 4.5% at $82.49 and Brent rises 4.6% to $88.10 a barrel, with both benchmarks up 16% on the week. (anthony.harrup@wsj.com)

Oil Rises More Than 2% As U.S.-Iran Tensions Remain High

1224 GMT – Oil prices extend gains in early U.S. trade, with Brent crude up 2.1% to $86.02 a barrel and WTI futures rising 2.4% to $80.15 a barrel. Escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran are curbing flows through the Strait of Hormuz and raising fears of a full-blown conflict as the two sides attack energy infrastructure in the Gulf region. Meanwhile, all eyes are on the Bab el-Mandeb strait, the gateway to the Red Sea that market watchers fear could become a target for Yemen’s Houthi rebels. While in February just under 3.9 million barrels a day were transported through this strait, the figure rose to about 7.2 million barrels in April, highlighting the growing importance of the shipping route, analysts at Commerzbank say. (giulia.petroni@wsj.com)