Oil prices rose today (02/01/2024) after Iran sent a warship to the Red Sea as the situation remains tense in the critical waterway for global transport, where ships have been attacked by Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
Brent jumped 1.6 percent to $78.27 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate rose 1.42 percent to $72.67 a barrel in Asian trade, according to CNBC.
Iran announced on Monday (01.01.24) that it had sent the destroyer Alborz through the strategic Bab al-Mandeb strait, the country’s state media reported, without elaborating on the warship’s mission. He added that operations are periodically conducted in the Red Sea to secure shipping lanes.
The move comes after the US Navy destroyed three boats belonging to Iran-backed Houthi rebels, killing 10 fighters, according to an Associated Press report. The Navy responded to a distress signal from the Singapore-flagged ship Maersk Hangzhou, which had come under fire from the Houthis, the US Central Command said in a statement.
In a statement from a rebel spokesman on Sunday, the Houthi group claimed the vessels were carrying out “official duties to secure sea lanes”, a rebel-owned news channel reported.
“Any escalation of conflicts in that area will certainly add a bigger risk premium to Brent,” Bernstein senior energy analyst Neil Beveridge told CNBC. He noted, however, that there would be no significant impact yet.
“We have never seen Iranian naval raids before. And as long as it really doesn’t lead to any escalation, then I don’t really see any significant impact at that level,” he added.
I also want to know your view in general on the oil markets and, you know, the whole supply and demand mismatch, where there are concerns about oversupply, what would that mean for all the prices? Because they have been pretty stable, pretty much ignoring what could lead to downward pressure and the price of oil.
The Houthi group has been attacking ships in the Red Sea, targeting Israeli ships and other vessels headed to or from Israel, in retaliation for the country’s war on Gaza that has so far killed nearly 22,000 people there.
Major shipping companies stopped transiting through the Suez Canal and the Red Sea in early December, opting instead to route via southern Africa – a longer and more expensive journey with shipping rates as high as $10,000 per container.
According to newsit, German container shipping company Hapag-Lloyd said on Friday (29.12.23) that it will continue to divert its ships around the Suez Canal.
However, the US launch of Operation Prosperity Guardian, a multinational naval force, has boosted the confidence of shipping companies. Danish shipping giant Maersk said on Sunday it would continue operations in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
Read also:
Achaia: Dead woman in a traffic accident in Bodeika – PHOTO
Electricity: Detailed charges of all providers’ tariffs for January
Japan: Clarifications on the message “1 minute before the earthquake”, 48 dead – How can it be applied in Greece?
Thessaloniki: What did the breathalyzer show for the killer of the 32-year-old Policeman
VIDEO of the moment South Korea’s opposition leader is stabbed in the neck
#Oil #Prices #rose #Iran #entered #Red #Sea
