Oil Prices Extend Rally As Mideast Tensions Escalate
(RTTNews) - Oil prices traded sharply higher on Wednesday to hit a seven-week high as risks to global supply spread beyond the Middle East to the Black Sea.
Brent crude futures jumped more than 4 percent to hover around $95 a barrel, climbing for a fourth day, after the U.S. military carried out its 11th consecutive night of strikes against Iran and President Donald Trump vowed to bomb Pickaxe Mountain.
The U.S. military said it had targeted military operations centers, maritime assets, aircraft hangars, drone storage facilities and logistic infrastructure.
Iranian media reported explosions in Bushehr, home to the Iranian nuclear power plant, signaling a further escalation in hostilities. WTI crude futures were up 4.3 percent at $87.95.
Trump played down the prospects of near-term talks with Iran and warned that U.S. forces could strike Iran's Pickaxe Mountain, which is located near Natanz and is believed to house an undeclared nuclear enrichment facility.
The threat came as the U.S. military completed the 11th night of strikes on Iran and Tehran retaliated across the Gulf.
The Red Sea is emerging as a new flashpoint after Yemen's Iranian-backed Houthi rebels announced a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia. A Kuwaiti tanker carrying oil products was struck in Hormuz, underscoring persistent threats to maritime traffic.
It is feared that Brent prices could climb back above $100 a barrel if the Middle East conflict drags on.
