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Oil prices rise above $100 a barrel for first time since July as Iran war escalates
On Wednesday, Iran attacked over a dozen vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, escalating the six-month conflict after the United States destroyed five Iranian oil tankers on Tuesday and driving Brent prices above $100 per barrel.
Tehran has choked off the strategic Strait while Washington presses a counter-blockade of Iranian ports, creating the largest wave of shipping strikes since the conflict began six months ago.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps reported attacking two United States vessels and 10 "non-compliant vessels," while The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said "several" ships in The Gulf were "subject to disabling fire as part of ongoing military activity in the region."
Rising oil prices reflect market fears that the conflict will disrupt supplies, as Iran's foreign ministry labeled the tanker attacks "an overt threat to regional and international peace and security."
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday in Colombia that "Iran continues to try to hit US naval ships," warning the country will lose more tankers in retaliation for each attack.
(New York = Yonhap News) Correspondent Lim Soo-jung = International oil prices surged more than 3% on the 9th (local time) as armed conflict between the United States and Iran intensified.