Crude Oil Futures Surge For 4th Day As Fresh US-Iran Strikes Put Hormuz In Focus

Crude oil futures rose for the fourth straight session, gaining ₹232 to ₹8,216 per barrel on Monday as fresh US-Iran military strikes stoked fears of disruption to energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.

On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), crude oil for September delivery jumped by ₹232, or 2.91%, to ₹8,216 per barrel in 6,578 lots.

The October contract also advanced ₹100, or 1.27%, to ₹7,947 per barrel in 1,749 lots on the MCX.

MCX crude oil futures advanced as Iran's retaliatory strikes on US military installations rekindled fears of a wider conflict following Washington's attacks on Tehran's rocket-launcher sites, Akshat Siddhant, Lead quant analyst at investment platform Mudrex, said.

In the international markets, Brent oil futures for November delivery rose $2.88, or 3.3%, to $90.98 per barrel on the Intercontinental Exchange.

The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for October contract went up by $2.37, or nearly 3%, to $85.77 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

The weekend saw the sharpest escalation in a month, pushing crude more than 3% higher after Brent had settled near $89 a barrel on Friday, Anindya Banerjee, Head of Commodity and Currency Research at Kotak Securities, said.

The US military on Sunday struck two rocket-launcher sites on Iran's Larak Island, their first strikes on Iran in a month, after the Central Command said Iranian forces had been observed preparing to lay mines into the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran retaliated within hours by firing missiles at American bases in the region.

The developments have put the world's most important oil chokepoint back at the centre of the market participants' attention.

"Mining the strait has always been this market's single biggest fear, because mines do not distinguish between flags and take months to clear, even the preparation is enough to reprice risk," Banerjee said.

Visible tanker transits fell to just five vessels a day over the weekend, while crude flows past the blockade averaged 6.7 million barrels a day last week, against 20 million before the war, he said.

On the outlook, Banerjee expects Brent to remain within the $85-95 range, but said the risk has clearly shifted towards the upper end.