Houthi Missile Targets Saudi Arabia's Largest Refinery as Brent Rises to $115.36

Crude oil prices surged Wednesday following an announcement by Iran-backed Houthis that they had targeted Saudi Arabia's largest oil refinery with a missile, a facility with a processing capacity of 550,000 barrels per day.

Brent crude rose 1.3 percent to $115.36 per barrel, while U.S. crude (WTI) climbed 1.22 percent to $101.12. Oil prices had retreated roughly two dollars on Tuesday amid reports of diplomatic discussions in the region, before recovering their upward momentum as soon as news of the strike spread.

The Houthi movement claimed responsibility for the attack, which was carried out by missile, though Saudi officials have yet to issue any confirmation or denial of the incident.

On the global oil supply front, three sources familiar with negotiations reported that OPEC+ is likely to maintain its December production targets unchanged at its upcoming meeting on Sunday. Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Algeria, Kazakhstan, and Oman are currently operating at production levels below their assigned quotas.

On the other hand, several factors are tempering the rally's intensity: market expectations of rising U.S. oil inventories, as well as the possibility of declining Russian crude exports through Baltic and Black Sea ports next month, which traders attribute to Russian refineries' shift toward increasing diesel production following an agreement reached with Washington this month.