USO rises 2.1% as Houthi attacks stoke supply fears
Reuters reports that USO is also up 2.1%, at $163.15 a share, as the market reacts to strikes across Saudi Arabia.
Published
Brent crude is up $3.19, or 2.9%, at $112.01 a barrel, Reuters reports. The price touched $112.68 earlier in the session, its highest since May 18. WTI rose $2.41, or 2.5%, to $99.56, after touching $100.09. Oil is rising as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia raise fears about supply.
Reuters reports that the Houthis struck several Saudi targets on October 21. The attacks included Dammam civilian airport, where at least one person was killed and eight wounded, and a drone attack near a Saudi oil field that killed two people. The National reports that debris from a drone intercepted by Saudi air defences fell near a processing plant at the Shaybah field, struck a contractor's vehicle and caused a fire. The Saudi Energy Ministry said the drone targeted the plant and that operations were unaffected. The field produces about 1 million barrels a day. Aramco has said that Yanbu and Shaybah took no damage from the attacks the Houthis claimed.
The National also reports that an attack earlier this month hit Riyadh's main international airport, the deadliest on the kingdom in more than a decade, and that Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline has come under attack. Reuters reports, citing sources, that Saudi Aramco told staff to leave its Dhahran headquarters and work remotely. The United States has ordered some diplomats and family members out of its missions in Saudi Arabia.
Crude has risen several times since late September following Houthi attacks.
Morgan Stanley estimated Middle East crude exports at about 17 million barrels a day last week. PVM analyst Tamas Varga said attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and the Houthi strikes outweigh reports of exports above pre-conflict levels.
Sustained oil near five-month highs raises input costs and inflation risk for the wider market the longer the Houthi campaign goes on. So far, output has held up through the escalation.
© Raydn · raydn.us