Oil prices hit $100 for the first time since May
Oil prices hit $100 a barrel for the first time since May as escalating conflicts in the Middle East reignited fears about global energy supplies.
Brent crude oil, the global benchmark for oil prices, rose more than 5% on Thursday, following several days of increases as the United States stepped up military strikes against Iran.
Prices rose after Houthi militias attacked oil tankers in the Red Sea, threatening a key export route that Saudi Arabia uses to bypass the Strait of Hormuz.
Gas prices have also increased steadily over the past month; The reference gas price in the UK was currently around 150p per therm, down from around 98p per therm on 26 June.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Thursday said it abandoned an attempt by three tankers to pass through Hormuz after an explosion in one of them caused the tank to catch fire.
A temporary ceasefire between the US and Iran has failed, and this week US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said those in charge in Iran were “not ready to make a deal”.
