Oil Prices Rise as US-Iran Conflict Threatens Middle East Supply

Oil prices climbed for a third consecutive session on Wednesday as escalating military clashes between the United States and Iran fueled concerns over prolonged disruptions to Middle East crude supplies and tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures for November delivery rose 1.6% to $96.18 per barrel as of 00:56 GMT, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 1.6% to $91.65 per barrel.

Both oil benchmarks surged nearly 5% in the previous session, reaching their highest levels in around five weeks as geopolitical risks intensified.

The latest advance came after fresh U.S. strikes on Iranian targets and retaliatory Iranian attacks against U.S. forces and commercial vessels near the Strait of Hormuz. The strategically important waterway is a major route for global oil shipments, making any sustained disruption a significant risk to energy markets.

Tanker movements through the strait remained severely restricted on Monday. Preliminary data from Kpler showed that only five commodity vessels crossed the waterway.

Supply concerns increased further after two supertankers carrying Saudi Arabian crude were struck by unidentified projectiles while navigating the strait on Monday. Each vessel had loaded approximately 2 million barrels of crude at Saudi Arabia's Juaymah terminal.

Iranian oil exports have also fallen sharply amid the conflict. Reuters reported that Iran's crude loadings dropped to between 220,000 and 255,000 barrels per day in August, compared with roughly 2 million barrels per day in March.

Meanwhile, U.S. inventory figures provided additional support for crude prices. Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed U.S. crude inventories declined by 2.6 million barrels during the week ended Aug. 28, reversing the previous week's 4.2 million-barrel increase.

Gasoline stocks rose by approximately 300,000 barrels, while distillate inventories declined by a similar amount.

Investors are now awaiting the U.S. Energy Information Administration's weekly petroleum inventory report later Wednesday for further signals on domestic crude supply and demand. Continued US-Iran tensions and developments around the Strait of Hormuz are expected to remain key drivers for global oil prices.