NEW YORK, July 29 Oil prices climbed 7% on Wednesday as airstrikes resumed in the Middle East, adding to worries about dwindling supply as U.S. government data showed crude inventories fell to a multi-year low.
Brent futures were up $6.16, or 7.33%, at $90.25 a barrel by 11:36 a.m
ET (1536 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $5.40, or 6.81%, to $84.65 a barrel. “Renewed military strikes in the Middle East and Iranian officials reiterating that they want to control shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz amid depressed oil flows through the strait are lifting oil prices again,” UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said.
The U.S. and Saudi Arabia launched strikes on Iran-backed groups in Iraq on Wednesday, blaming them for drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities. The strikes came hours after the U.S. military said it had averted a surprise Iranian attack on U.S. troops in the region. Iran said it had fired on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and at U.S. bases in Jordan.