Oil prices continued their rise during trading on Thursday, jumping by more than 2% and reaching their highest levels in nearly three weeks, supported by ongoing geopolitical concerns related to the conflict between the United States and Iran and its potential impact on crude supplies and shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
The gains came as investors continued to assess the likelihood of an escalation in the Middle East conflict, particularly given the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz as a key maritime chokepoint for global energy exports. Any significant disruption to shipping through the strait could heighten supply concerns and push prices even higher.
Hiroyuki Kikukawa, chief strategist at Nissan Securities Investment, said oil prices were still receiving support from attacks and tensions in the Middle East, but noted that the market might need a larger military escalation for the upward trend to gain additional momentum.
Conversely, US inventory data limited the strength of optimism in the crude oil market, after data from the Energy Information Administration showed that oil inventories in the United States rose by about 4.4 million barrels during the last week, a reading that contradicted market expectations, which had indicated a decrease of 600,000 barrels.
The rise in inventories reflects a greater supply glut within the US market, a factor that usually puts downward pressure on prices, but supply risks in the Middle East remained the strongest driver of oil movements during the session.
As for prices, Brent crude futures for October delivery rose by about 2.28% or $2.09 to reach $93.71 per barrel, while Nymex crude for October delivery rose by 2.3% or $1.95 to $86.34 per barrel.
