rent oil prices jumped more than $3 a barrel on Monday, initially spooked by Israel’s launch of renewed strikes on Lebanon a day earlier, but also gaining further steam after sounds of explosions were heard in Iran.
Sounds of blasts were heard – in Tehran, Tabriz and Isfahan, local media reported early on Monday, eroding hopes for an imminent end to the wider war and a restart to crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude futures rose $3.20 or 3.39% to $96.24 a barrel while U.S. crude futures were up $2.87 or 3.17% at $93.41 per barrel as of 0333 GMT.
Those gains erased Friday’s losses, when prices fell on hopes of a de-escalation in the U.S.-Iran conflict, which has seen oil prices rise over 50% since March.
