The Strait of Hormuz. [Reuters]
The Strait of Hormuz. [Reuters]

International oil prices surged after a liquefied natural gas carrier and oil tankers were struck in a series of attacks near the Strait of Hormuz. News that the US government plans to revoke sanctions waivers on Iranian crude pushed prices up more than 5% in after-hours trade.

September Brent crude settled up 3.01% at $74.16 a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange on Tuesday local time.

August West Texas Intermediate on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed 2.76% higher at $70.44 a barrel the same day.

Both benchmarks recorded their largest single-day gains since June 1.

The rally was driven by attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments.

According to the Qatari government and the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, three vessels — one Qatari LNG carrier and two oil tankers — were attacked near the strait beginning Tuesday.

Concerns that the incidents could disrupt oil and LNG shipments spread through markets, pushing a risk premium into prices.

After the regular session closed, prices jumped further on reports that the US government intends to halt sanctions waivers on Iranian crude.

A US government official told CNBC that "the memorandum of understanding reached with Iran is entirely performance-based," explaining the decision to revoke the waivers.

Following the news, Brent rose as high as $76.04 a barrel in after-hours trading, up 5.6%, while WTI climbed 5.4% to $72.25.

Markets are watching whether renewed security concerns in the Strait of Hormuz could broaden fears of a Middle East supply disruption, with oil price volatility expected to persist for now.


sjy@heraldcorp.com