Oil prices saw a sharp surge at the start of Asian trading on Monday following a series of reciprocal strikes between the United States and Iran over the weekend, fueling concerns about an escalation of the military conflict and fresh disruptions to oil supply in the Middle East.
Brent crude futures jumped 3% to $90.75 per barrel—the highest level in more than five weeks—as of 02:51 on Monday, while West Texas Intermediate futures climbed 2.5% to $83.85 per barrel.
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Oil prices spiked after the U.S. and Iran exchanged a series of strikes over the weekend. The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) reported launching fresh strikes against Iran on Sunday evening.
These new strikes followed Iranian attacks on a U.S. base in Jordan, which killed at least two American service members and left many others wounded.
The U.S. military targeted a broader range of sites in Iran, while Iran intensified its own assaults on neighboring Gulf countries.
Fighting remains concentrated around control of the Strait of Hormuz, with CENTCOM stating that the latest strikes were aimed at progressively crippling Iranian military capabilities used to target vessels in the waterway.
The renewed hostilities mark the most serious escalation in U.S.-Iranian relations since the April ceasefire, while peace talks between the two parties appear to have completely stalled.
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz continues to be heavily disrupted, operating at only a fraction of pre-conflict levels, keeping markets on edge over the threat of further oil supply interruptions and embedding a heightened risk premium into commodity prices.
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