Oil prices open higher as war in Middle East rages

WASHINGTON: Oil prices kept rising as markets opened Sunday (Mar 15), with both benchmarks higher as the war in the Middle East disrupts global supplies.

Around 10.45pm GMT, shortly after the Chicago Mercantile Exchange opened, US benchmark West Texas Intermediate rose 2.54 per cent to US$100.22 a barrel, while the price of Brent, the international benchmark for oil, was up 2.88 per cent to US$106.11 a barrel.

The rise was lower than the price surges seen during market sessions in the past two weeks.

With Gulf states slashing production and oil tankers stuck in the Gulf, benchmark oil prices have risen 40 to 50 per cent since the United States and Israel first attacked Iran on Feb 28, threatening to curb growth and stoke inflation.

The Strait of Hormuz, which usually sees passage of 20 per cent of global oil and gas exports, remains effectively shut.