Oil prices rose on Thursday as Iran continued to strike U.S. Gulf allies with Kuwait intercepting incoming missiles and drones.
Brent crude futures was up 57 cents to $96.20 per barrel. The international benchmark broke $97 earlier in the session. U.S. West Texas Intermediate traded 85 cents higher at $91.86 per barrel.
Kuwait’s armed forces said Thursday that the kingdom was facing “ongoing Iranian aggression” as the country’s air defenses engaged missiles and drones, according to the Kuwait Times.
Oil prices have gained more than 7% this week The U.S. and Iran have traded military strikes this week for the first time since July. Washington seeks to degrade Tehran’s ability to attack ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC on Wednesday that more 17 million barrels of oil transited Hormuz on Monday, a wartime record, under U.S. military protection. About 20 million barrels per day of crude and producted passed through the strait before the war started on Feb. 28.
President Donald Trump indicated Wednesday that he does not expect the current round of hostilities to escalate into a return to war.
“I don’t think it will be very much longer,” Trump said of the fighting. “I don’t know how much more they can take.”
