Crude skyrockets amid rising Middle East tensions
Brent crude’s price has surged by $5.00/bbl, to trade at $74.41/bbl at 06.00 GMT, up from the previous day’s settlement of $69.36/bbl, following escalating tensions in the oil-rich middle eastern region.
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Israel has carried out coordinated airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories, and military personnel, in what it calls a pre-emptive strike aimed at stopping Tehran's atomic ambitions.
The news has jolted global commodity markets, driving oil prices higher. Brent crude’s price has surged on risk premiums, as escalating tensions could significantly disrupt oil supply.
“Oil prices rallied more than 7% this morning after Israeli airstrikes against Iran,” ANZ Bank’s head of commodities strategy Warren Patterson noted.
A series of explosions were heard at Iran's primary uranium enrichment facility in Natanz, Reuters cited Iranian media reports. Israel’s government declared a state of emergency subsequently, as the military anticipated retaliation from Tehran.
The strikes claimed a top Iranian commander, Hossein Salami, and two nuclear scientists working on the enrichment programs, Reuters reports.
“We struck at the heart of Iran’s nuclear weaponization program. We targeted Iran’s main enrichment facility in Natanz,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said.
The attack comes days ahead of the sixth round of US-Iran talks in Oman on Sunday. The US has denied any involvement in these strikes.
“[The US-Iran] talks were set to continue this weekend. After these latest developments, it’s not clear if they will still go ahead,” Patterson noted.
Iran has five prominent nuclear enrichment facilities spread across the country, according to Reuters. The OPEC+ country pumps about 3.3 million b/d of crude oil and exports about 1.7 million b/d, according to Patterson.
“In a scenario where we see further escalation, it’s not too difficult to envisage a situation where Iranian oil supplies are disrupted,” Patterson said.
By Aparupa Mazumder
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