Oil Rises As Iran Vows To Take Revenge On Israel

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Tuesday April 2, 2024

Crude prices on Tuesday rose over 1 percent on demand concerns stemming from new attacks on Russian energy facilities by Ukraine and the ongoing hostilities in the Middle East.

As of 15:40 GMT Brent rose $1.35 to $88.76 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate rose $1.27 to $84.98.

Russia's Astrakhan gas processing plant on Tuesday was hit by a Ukranian drone, reportedly damaging its primary oil refining unit that accounts for about half of the facility's 340,000 barrels per day (bpd) output capability.

Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch and Associates, voiced the resulting sentiment among analysts by stating, "The likelihood that continued restricted Russian product exports could further tighten U.S. petroleum supplies has suddenly forced re-calculation of U.S. (oil) balances across the rest of this month and possibly beyond."

Concerns were exacerbated by news of Iran vowing to take revenge on Israel for an airstrike that killed military staff at the Iranian embassy in Damascus.

Tamas Varga, analyst at PVM, said, Iran's involvement in the Middle East hostilities could create a "region-wide conflict with plausible impact on oil supply."

In other oil related news on Tuesday, Chinese manufacturing data showed signs of an economic recovery, which could stoke bullish sentiment in the near future; also, trading this week may be influenced by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which is expected to affirm its current output policy at a review meeting scheduled for Wednesday