Oil prices rise after Iran missile attack on Israel

Oil prices rose 4 per cent after Iran launched a missile attack on Israel in the latest escalation in the growing conflict in the Middle East.
One-month futures contracts for Brent crude, the international benchmark price, increased $3.10, or 4 per cent, to $74.95 a barrel.
Iran, the regional power that backs militant group Hezbollah, began a missile attack on Israel on Tuesday evening as residents were ordered to take shelter.
West Texas intermediate, another leading benchmark, climbed $2.87, or 4.2 per cent, to $71.04 a barrel. The rise in the price of Brent crude also pushed up the shares of London’s oil majors. Shell, the energy and gas giant, climbed 53p, or 2.2 per cent, to £24.78, while BP added 9¼p, or 2.4 per cent, to 401p. Gold, often seen as a safe haven asset, rose 1 per cent to $2,661.99 an ounce.
Prior to the reports, oil was trading near a two-week low as weak global demand and the outlook for increased supply had outweighed concerns over the escalating conflict in the Middle East.
A number of ministers from the Opec+ producer group will meet on Wednesday to assess the market, but it is expected that no policy changes will be made. Opec+ includes the 12 members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries and another group of crude producers led by Russia.
At a meeting of energy ministers from the Opec+ group in June, the oil production cartel set out a path for some of its members to unravel some of the production curbs put in place at the end of 2022. Beginning in December, Opec+ is scheduled to increase oil output by 180,000 barrels a day each month.
The cartel agreed to deep production cuts in late 2022, which have totalled 5.86 million barrels a day, equating to about 5.7 per cent of global demand, and have played an important role in putting a floor under oil prices in an effort to allay demand concerns.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, oil prices slipped to lows of about $20 a barrel. In 2022, oil prices climbed to a peak of near $120 a barrel following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In September, the price of Brent crude slipped back to a low of $69.19 a barrel with the United States increasing its production, amid a weak demand from China and despite fears over growing escalation in the Middle East.