Brent surpasses $116 per barrel as attacks on Gulf tankers escalate

Brent crude benchmark price exceeded $116.72 per barrel on Friday, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose above $103, reaching their highest levels since April.

Futures prices point to the possibility of Brent remaining above $100 through April next year.

Gains have accumulated since the war began; Brent has surged roughly 60 percent, while WTI has risen more than 50 percent. Brent recorded its strongest weekly performance in approximately two months during the past week.

Several factors underlie this surge: escalating attacks on energy tankers in the Gulf, which reached their highest levels in October since the war's onset according to Deutsche Bank data, and a decline in oil shipments from the region following a partial recovery in September. Off the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of global oil flowed before the war, Iran-backed Houthis launched an attack on a Saudi airport that killed two people, along with reports that Washington has withdrawn some of its diplomatic staff from the region.

Reports also indicated that U.S. and Israeli militaries are drawing up plans for potential strikes against Iran following the conclusion of U.S. midterm elections.

All of this has been reflected in the American consumer; the national average price for gasoline reached $4.29 per gallon, while diesel jumped to $6.31, both above pre-war levels. The S&P 500 index fell 0.5 percent on Friday amid concerns over energy costs and their impact on inflation.