US and Iran Launch Fresh Strikes Over Hormuz, Oil Prices Surge 4%

Dawn reports Brent crude rose 4.08pc to $79.11, while Guardian reports a 4.7% rise to $79.59.

Dawn reports 20pc of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas transited the strait before the war began at the end of February, while Guardian does not mention this figure.

U.S. military launched a new wave of strikes on Iran after renewed fighting over the Strait of Hormuz

Brent crude jumps nearly 5% and Asian markets drop, with chipmakers including SK Hynix among hardest hit Business live – latest updates Oil prices jumped and stocks fell after the US launched a fresh wave of attacks against Iran amid an escalating standoff over the strait or Hormuz. Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, rose 4.7% to $79.59 a barrel. Asian stock markets dropped sharply, with South Korea’s Kospi down 8% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 and China’s Shanghai Composite 2% lower. Continue reading...

Oil prices surged over 4 per cent on Monday as energy shipments via the Strait of Hormuz remained under threat, with the US and Iran announcing renewed military strikes. Brent crude futures climbed $3.10, or 4.08pc, to $79.11 by 0325 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude rose $2.95, or 4.11pc, to $74.36 a barrel. US forces completed another wave of strikes against Iran on Monday, with the Centcom saying it hit dozens of targets at multiple locations with precision munitions. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Monday they attacked US military bases in Kuwait and Bahrain. US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the Strait of Hormuz was open to commercial traffic, although Iran declared earlier that it had closed the strait after a vessel had travelled on an unapproved route and was struck. Some 20pc of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas transited the strait before the war began at the end of February. Six vessels transited the strait on Sunday, ship-tracking data from Kpler showed, the lowest number in five weeks. The escalating attacks cast further doubt on the future of an interim US-Iranian agreement signed last month that aimed to reopen the strait and end the war after a further 60 days of negotiations. Following the agreement, global oil supply rose by 4.1 million barrels per day in June, but remained 9.4m bpd below pre-war levels, the International Energy Agency said in its monthly report on Friday. “Hopes of a relatively quick resolution to the recent skirmishes may be in doubt after tension escalated over the weekend,” ANZ analysts said in a note. IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said the relatively tame rise in oil prices suggested the market was taking the view that the current flare-up represented an escalation within a fragile truce and fell well short of a complete collapse of the ceasefire. “How accurate that view is remains to be seen,” he said in a note.

Oil prices surged over 4% today as energy shipments via the Strait of Hormuz remained under threat, with the US and Iran announcing renewed military strikes.

Oil prices surge again, approaching $80 per barrel amid strikes in Iran  Ynetnews

Brent crude climbs more than 4 percent as Washington and Tehran clash over control of critical waterway.

Seoul led losses in most Asian stocks, dragged down by market heavyweight SK hynix's plunge of more than 15 per cent.

Oil prices surged sharply as renewed military action between Iran and the United States escalated tensions. Fresh strikes expanded to Qatar and the United Arab Emirates over the weekend. This escalation has clouded the future of the interim US-Iran agreement signed last month. Market participants remain cautious about how the developing situation could unfold. Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a strong condemnation of the latest US military strikes.