Oil prices rise for fifth day in a row - Threats of blockade in the Red Sea and Hormuz affect
Oil prices rose for a fifth straight day on Thursday, due to growing concerns about supply availability amid attacks on tankers in the Red Sea by Yemen's Houthi rebels and a standoff between the US and Iran that has nearly closed the Strait of Hormuz again.
Brent crude futures rose 2.6% to $96.49, the highest since June 8. U.S. crude rose 1.8% to $88.42.
Iran's Revolutionary Guard said an oil tanker caught fire after an explosion while trying to follow a route they described as mined, in the southern area of the Strait of Hormuz near the coast of Oman, while two others were turned back.
In a statement, the Guard said the strait was under their control and "fully closed" as US actions continued in the region, warning that no tanker would be allowed to enter or leave without coordination with Iran.
In addition to the conflict over control of the key waterway, the Iran-aligned Houthis have opened a new front by targeting ships carrying Saudi oil in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait and attempting to impose a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia.
Oil prices are facing a rare risk from simultaneous disruptions in both the Bab el-Mandeb and the Strait of Hormuz, said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova.
The Houthis said they had carried out a military operation targeting two Saudi oil tankers, and maritime security reports said one of the ships identified by the group, the Saudi-flagged tanker Encelia, had been hit in the Red Sea.
The Houthis' naval blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea threatens to cut off global energy supplies across the Gulf, while Iran's Revolutionary Guard spokesman also warned shipping companies that the southern route of the Strait of Hormuz is mined.
The new threat to the Red Sea passage could cut off up to 5 million barrels per day of oil supplies and the main route that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz.
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