Latest news with #energytraders
Zawya
a day ago
- Business
- Zawya
Oil soars more than 6% after Israel's strike on Iran alarms market
Oil prices jumped more than $4 a barrel on Friday, hitting their highest price in almost five months after Israel struck Iran, dramatically escalating tensions in the Middle East and raising worries about disrupted oil supplies. Brent crude futures jumped $4.60, or 6.63%, to $73.96 a barrel by 0612 GMT after hitting an intraday high of $78.50, the highest since January 27. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up $4.99, or 7.33%, at $73.03 a barrel after hitting a high of $77.62, the loftiest since January 21. Friday's gains were the largest intraday moves for both contracts since 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine, causing energy prices to spike. Israel said it targeted Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders on Friday at the start of what it warned would be a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon. "A key question is whether the Iranian retaliation will be limited to Israel or if the leadership will seek to internationalize the cost of tonight's action by targeting bases and critical economic infrastructure across the wider region," RBC Capital analyst Helima Croft said in a note. Several oil traders in Singapore said it was still too early to say if the strike will affect Middle East oil shipments as it will depend on how Iran retaliates and if the U.S. will intervene. "It's too early to tell but I think the market is worried about shutting off of the Strait of Hormuz," one of the traders said. Barclays analyst Amarpreet Singh said the attack has alarmed oil markets although these attacks have had no effect on oil market fundamentals so far. "In a worst-case scenario, the conflict could expand to other key oil and gas producers in the region, and shipping," he said in a note. The $10 a barrel price gain in the past three days had yet to reflect any drop in Iranian oil production, let alone an escalation that could involve disruption to energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz, he said. About a fifth of the world's total oil consumption passes through the Strait or some 18-19 million bpd of oil, condensate and fuel. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel will receive "harsh punishment" following Friday's attack that he said killed several military commanders. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday called Israel's strikes against Iran a "unilateral action" and said Washington was not involved while also urging Tehran not to target U.S. interests or personnel in the region. RBC's Croft said: "If oil is caught in the cross-fire, we anticipate that President Trump will seek OPEC spare barrels to try to keep a lid on prices and shield U.S. consumers from the economic impact of the Middle East conflict." In other markets, stocks dived in early Asian trade, led by a selloff in U.S. futures, while investors scurried to safe havens such as gold and the Swiss franc. (Reporting by Florence Tan; Editing by Stephen Coates)
Globe and Mail
a day ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Oil soars after Israel's strike on Iran rattles market
Oil prices jumped more than $4 a barrel on Friday, hitting their highest price in almost five months after Israel struck Iran, dramatically escalating tensions in the Middle East and raising worries about disrupted oil supplies. Brent crude futures jumped $4.60, or 6.63 per cent, to $73.96 a barrel by 0612 GMT after hitting an intraday high of $78.50, the highest since January 27. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up $4.99, or 7.33 per cent, at $73.03 a barrel after hitting a high of $77.62, the loftiest since January 21. Friday's gains were the largest intraday moves for both contracts since 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine, causing energy prices to spike. Israel said it targeted Iran's nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders on Friday at the start of what it warned would be a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon. 'A key question is whether the Iranian retaliation will be limited to Israel or if the leadership will seek to internationalize the cost of tonight's action by targeting bases and critical economic infrastructure across the wider region,' RBC Capital analyst Helima Croft said in a note. Several oil traders in Singapore said it was still too early to say if the strike will affect Middle East oil shipments as it will depend on how Iran retaliates and if the U.S. will intervene. 'It's too early to tell but I think the market is worried about shutting off of the Strait of Hormuz,' one of the traders said. Demand for energy to soar 44 per cent from now to 2050, OPEC head says Barclays analyst Amarpreet Singh said the attack has alarmed oil markets although these attacks have had no effect on oil market fundamentals so far. 'In a worst-case scenario, the conflict could expand to other key oil and gas producers in the region, and shipping,' he said in a note. The $10 a barrel price gain in the past three days had yet to reflect any drop in Iranian oil production, let alone an escalation that could involve disruption to energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz, he said. About a fifth of the world's total oil consumption passes through the Strait or some 18-19 million bpd of oil, condensate and fuel. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Israel will receive 'harsh punishment' following Friday's attack that he said killed several military commanders. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday called Israel's strikes against Iran a 'unilateral action' and said Washington was not involved while also urging Tehran not to target U.S. interests or personnel in the region. RBC's Croft said: 'If oil is caught in the cross-fire, we anticipate that President Trump will seek OPEC spare barrels to try to keep a lid on prices and shield U.S. consumers from the economic impact of the Middle East conflict.' In other markets, stocks dived in early Asian trade, led by a selloff in U.S. futures, while investors scurried to safe havens such as gold and the Swiss franc.
BBC News
a day ago
- Business
- BBC News
Global oil prices soar after Israel attacks Iran
Global oil prices jumped after Israel said it had struck Iran, in a dramatic escalation of tensions in the Middle oil contracts Brent Crude and Nymex light sweet were up by more than 10% after the news are concerned that a conflict between Iran and Israel could disrupt supplies coming from the energy-rich cost of crude oil affects everything from the price of food at the supermarket to how much it costs to fill up your car. Analysts have told the BBC that energy traders will now be watching to see whether Iran retaliates in the coming days."It's an explosive situation, albeit one that could be defused quickly as we saw in April and October last year, when Israel and Iran struck each other directly," Vandana Hari of Vandana Insights told the BBC."It could also spiral out into a bigger war that disrupts Mideast oil supply," she an extreme scenario, Iran could disrupt supplies of millions of barrels of oil a day if it targets infrastructure or shipping in the Strait of strait is one of the world's most important shipping routes, with about a fifth of the world's oil passing through any one time, there are several dozen tankers on their way to the Strait of Hormuz, or leaving it, as major oil and gas producers in the Middle East and their customers transport energy from the to the north by Iran and to the south by Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Strait of Hormuz connects the Gulf with the Arabian Sea."What we see now is very initial risk-on reaction. But over the next day or two, the market will need to factor in where this could escalate to," Saul Kavonic, head of energy research at MST Financial reporting by Katie Silver
Wall Street Journal
a day ago
- Business
- Wall Street Journal
Oil Prices Jump After Israel's Attack
Benchmark U.S. crude futures rose by more than 10% to trade above $75 a barrel, the highest price since January and before President Trump's April tariff announcements had energy traders penciling in slower economic growth and lower fuel demand. Optimism over an Iran nuclear deal and the prospect of eased sanctions on the country's oil exports added pressure to prices earlier this spring. But now traders are showing they don't see much chance that the U.S. will lift restrictions on Iranian barrels any time soon, and that there may be additional disruptions to the region's oil output.
Bloomberg
4 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
LME Is Keeping a Closer Watch as Energy Traders Bet on Metals
Welcome to our guide to the commodities powering the global economy. Today, EMEA Metals and Mining Team Leader Mark Burton discusses how the London Metal Exchange is being more proactive to head off potential market risks. The world's top energy traders arrived in metals with a splash this year, building huge positions that give them growing influence over prices.
