Oil soars as Iran crisis worsens, disrupting flows through Hormuz
The price of Brent oil, the benchmark in Europe, rose 6.4%, to $77.5 per barrel. WTI, the US benchmark, adds 6% and exceeds $71 per barrel. So far this year, crude oil has risen more than 25%.
Oil could soar to $100 a barrel if shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is disrupted for weeks or months, Jorge León, director of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy, told Bloomberg Television. It is impossible for the market to fully compensate for the ~15 million barrels a day of crude oil that pass through the strait, he noted.
