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Strait of Hormuz Shipping Risks Push Oil Prices Up From Two-Month Lows
Analysts said 37 vessels were attacked in October, and fresh incidents this month have kept insurance and shipping risks elevated.
Brent and WTI crude prices rose from two-month lows on Wednesday, reflecting market volatility between hopes for United States-Iran de-escalation and concerns over Strait of Hormuz shipping attacks.
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy reports 37 vessels were attacked in the Strait of Hormuz last month, the highest monthly total since the Middle East war began.
Sparta Commodities analyst June Goh noted "an increase of vessel attacks in the Gulf shipping lanes amidst uncertainty of the diplomacy talks," citing Iran's willingness to meet United States demands as the top oil price driver.
Even if a deal is struck, increased waterway flows depend on mine clearance, insurance costs, and whether shipowners are willing to take risks, LSEG Oil Research notes.
American Petroleum Institute data shows crude stocks rose 9 million barrels for the week ending November 6, while OPEC production returned to 90% of pre-war levels as investors price out geopolitical risk premiums.
(New York = Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Yeon-sook = International oil prices, which had been continuing their downward trend, rose on the 11th (local time) for the first time in three days.
Oil prices rise, after two days of decline, in the midst of the uncertainties surrounding the conflict between the United States and Iran and the lack of concrete progress in the negotiations for the permanent reopening of the Strait of Ormuz. Brent, a world reference, fell below $90 per barrel on the eve, for the first time since August, after US President Donald Trump said that further attacks on Iran would not be necessary. At around 8:40 a.m…