Arabic version: ارتفاع أسعار النفط بفعل مخاطر الإمدادات في الشرق الأوسط

According to Cnbc, oil prices climbed on Wednesday as concerns over Middle East supply disruptions kept markets on edge. Attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz and on Saudi energy facilities added to worries about regional oil flows.

Brent crude futures gained 1.22% to $110.13 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 1.11% to $98.92 a barrel. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Tuesday that naval mines had prevented three tankers from passing through the Strait of Hormuz on routes Tehran considered unauthorized.

In a statement published on its official Sepah News website, the IRGC said two oil tankers were set ablaze and halted after mines exploded at what it described as an illegal crossing point in the southern part of the strait. Separately, Yemen’s Houthi militants claimed responsibility Monday for strikes targeting Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu, the Shaybah oilfield, and airports in Riyadh and Abha.

Oil shipping costs have also risen. Goldman Sachs said in a report published Tuesday that the global average crude freight rate had climbed above $20 per barrel, compared with $3 a year earlier. Although rates had eased slightly in recent days, they remained about seven times higher than a year ago.

Goldman estimated that war-risk premiums for Strait of Hormuz crossings accounted for about $7 of the $20 year-on-year increase in average crude freight rates, while ship-to-ship transfers outside the Persian Gulf added another $4. The bank said high freight costs could widen differences between crude grades, pressure refiners’ margins and lift refined fuel prices.