Brent crude oil surges to $100 a barrel for first time since May after reports of Red Sea attacks

Brent crude oil surged Thursday to $100 a barrel for the first time since May following reported Houthi attacks on vessels in the Red Sea – fueling concerns that global energy supplies could get even more badly disrupted.Brent crude oil prices had soared 7.1% to $100.74 a barrel as of about 10:50 a.m.ET, while West Texas Intermediate crude jumped 5.3% to $91.40 – setting the benchmarks up for huge monthly gains of roughly 40% and 30%, respectively.Oil prices were already climbing this week as traders grew concerned over a breakdown in peace talks between the US and Iran and renewed hostilities in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital maritime route for 20% of the world’s oil supplies that has been largely blockaded for months.Reports of fresh strikes in the Red Sea raised new fears that a second critical shipping route through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which carries about 7% of global oil supplies, could also be compromised – multiplying what is already the world’s worst-ever supply disruption.The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations posted on social media Thursday that a tanker was hit around 70 nautical miles off the coast of Saudi Arabia, sparking a fire onboard that the crew was fighting.There were no reported casualties. Yemen’s Houthis, an Iranian-backed militant group, claimed the attack, saying they fired at two vessels in the Red Sea for allegedly violating their maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia.Joe Adamski, managing director of ProcureAbility, a supply chain consultancy, told The Post it is “difficult to say for sure” where oil prices are headed since it is “unclear if the Houthis can maintain any kind of a blockade or effectively target shipping and/or Saudi export infrastructure.”“If the shooting continues, pricing will stay above $100, probably into the $110 to $120 range,” Adamski said.

“If that stabilizes or appears manageable, I’d expect to see mid-$80s.”Jeff Krimmel, founder of Krimmel Strategy, warned that oil pri...