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International oil benchmark Brent rose by 1% to $110.6 per barrel on Tuesday, reaching its highest since May, while European natural gas prices climbed to €89.7 per megawatt-hour, their highest level since December 2022.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for December delivery trade at $99.5 per barrel, up about 1% for the day, as shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz continue to drain inventories worldwide.
Oil prices tested their highest level since May on Monday after Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis claimed to have attacked Saudi targets, raising fears of a fresh escalation in the Middle East.
The attacks have heightened concerns that oil production and export facilities across the region could face further attacks.
The Houthis named targets including a Saudi Aramco facility in Yanbu, the Shaybah oilfield, King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and Abha Airport.
Meanwhile, the possibility that the United States and Israel could resume military operations against Iran is adding to market uncertainty.
Renewed strikes could disrupt regional oil production and shipping further, while attacks on commercial vessels threaten to prolong interruptions to energy flows.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains volatile despite a partial recovery in oil shipments. Kpler data shows that average oil flows through the waterway reached 11.6 million barrels per day in the seven days through Oct. 13, equivalent to about 68% of prewar levels. Vessel crossings also fell 29.6% week over week to 143 during Oct. 5-11.
Disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz continued to threaten flows along a critical route for global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies. Prolonged interruptions could delay deliveries to major importing markets, tighten global supply, and make it harder for countries to replenish their energy inventories.
Europe's gas reserves are adding to the pressure as the continent approaches winter, when demand typically rises. Gas Infrastructure Europe data puts gas storage levels across European Union countries at 74.58%, down from 85% during the same period last year.
Damage to facilities in Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)-producing countries following attacks launched by the United States and Israel against Iran in February and Iran's subsequent retaliatory strikes has also weighed on gas supplies to Europe.
Although some LNG cargoes from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have passed through the Strait of Hormuz in recent weeks, the shipments have not been enough to significantly rebalance global supply and demand, with LNG flows through the strait remaining 80% below prewar levels.
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