Oil Crosses $100 After Houthis Take Over Red Sea

Brent crude climbed above the $100-per-barrel mark on Thursday, rising 42 percent in just 20 days as escalating security threats in the Red Sea heightened concerns over global oil supplies and key shipping routes.

At the time of writing, Brent crude was trading at $100.10 a barrel, up $6.07 or 6.45 percent, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude stood at $91.49 a barrel, gaining $4.66 or 5.37 percent.

The latest rally follows claims by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group that it attacked two Saudi oil tankers near the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, prompting some vessels to divert away from one of the world’s busiest maritime chokepoints.

Together, the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait handle roughly one-third of the world’s seaborne crude oil trade, with an estimated 25 to 30 million barrels of oil passing through the two chokepoints every day.

Any disruption to either route can force tankers onto longer, more expensive voyages, driving up freight costs and threatening global oil supplies.

Oil prices have surged by nearly 20 percent over the past two weeks as traders priced in rising geopolitical risks and the possibility of prolonged disruptions to crude shipments from the Middle East.

A sustained move above $100 per barrel could add fresh inflationary pressure worldwide by raising fuel, transportation, and manufacturing costs.