On July 13 (local time), according to AFP news agency, world oil prices simultaneously increased sharply in the first trading session of the week after the US launched a new air strike targeting Iran, raising concerns about the risk of escalating tensions in the Middle East and disrupting global energy supplies.
According to AFP, the price of Brent North Sea oil at one point increased by 3.7%, to 78.83 USD/barrel, while US WTI oil increased by about 4%, reaching 74.26 USD/barrel.
The increase took place after the conflict between the US and Iran flared up again in the Strait of Hormuz - a strategic shipping route, where about one-third of the world's oil trade is transited by sea.
The new confrontation continues the waves of fighting in the past week, in the context that negotiations to maintain the ceasefire and ensure traffic through the Strait of Hormuz have not yet made significant progress.
According to AFP, the US military has launched a series of new airstrikes after many of Washington's Gulf allies were attacked in developments related to the Hormuz Strait area.
Previously, Iran was accused of attacking a commercial ship passing through the Strait of Hormuz on the morning of July 13, causing the ship to catch fire and the entire crew to leave the ship.
After the incident, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced that the Strait of Hormuz would be closed "until US intervention actions in the region cease", according to IRNA news agency.
Meanwhile, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) affirmed on social network X that this sea route is still "open to all ships and boats traveling legally".
Mr. Fawad Razaqzada - market analyst at Forex.com - said the situation is at risk of rapid escalation.
Of course, tensions can cool down, we have witnessed it before. But at the present time, investors are forced to prepare for the worst-case scenario," he said.
Experts say that if US-Iran tensions continue to prolong, oil prices are likely to remain high, while increasing the risk of inflation and creating more pressure on central bank interest rate policies.
