(RTTNews) – Oil prices traded higher on Monday as renewed hostilities in the Middle East posed fresh risks to ships seeking to navigate the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude prices were up 2.2 percent at $77.70 a barrel, paring some gains after surging more than 4 percent earlier in the session as the U.S. and Iran continued to exchange missile strikes, raising fresh uncertainty over oil supplies and regional stability. WTI crude futures were up 2.2 percent at $72.97.
Investors fretted over potential supply disruptions after the U.S. military launched another round of strikes against Iran overnight and into early Monday “to degrade their ability to attack commercial ships freely transiting the Strait of Hormuz.”
These attacks came in response to an Iranian strike on a container ship in the critical waterway the day before.
Iran responded to these strikes by attacking Gulf Arab states, including Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Oman, further straining a fragile ceasefire between the two countries.
Iran announced the closure of the waterway “until further notice”- a claim U.S. military and maritime authorities rejected.
According to Press TV, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said that the strategic waterway would remain shut until the United States ends its “interference” in the West Asia region.
“A return to full-scale hostilities would have catastrophic consequences,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
www.nasdaq.com