Brent crude oil jumps above $100 a barrel as Iran's attacks on shipping worsen supply concerns

The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil, the international standard, jumped above $100 a barrel early on Thursday, just days after it spiked near $120 in the latest jolts to financial markets and the global economy as a whole amid the West Asia crisis.

Oil prices shot more than 9% higher as supply concerns worsened with Iranian attacks on commercial shipping around the Strait of Hormuz.

The price of US benchmark crude oil jumped to about $95 a barrel.

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The latest attacks marked an escalation in Iran's campaign aimed at generating enough global economic pain to pressure the United States and Israel to end the war that started 13 days ago. But there were no signs that the conflict was subsiding.

Iran has targeted oil fields and refineries in Gulf Arab nations and effectively stopped cargo traffic through the narrow Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of all traded oil passes.

In response, the International Energy Agency agreed Wednesday to release 400 million barrels of oil, the largest volume of emergency oil reserves in its history, in a bid to counter the war's effects on energy markets. The US planned to release 172 million barrels of oil next week from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve to combat steep prices, according to an Associated Press report.

The IEA's announcement came a day after energy ministers from the Group of Seven — the leading industrialised nations of Canada, the United States, France, Italy, Japan, Germany and Britain — met in Paris to look at ways to bring down prices.

But the continued strife and uncertainty have fueled speculation prices could push still higher.

On Wednesday morning, Brent crude futures swung between gains and losses to trade 0.2% higher at $87.89 a barrel, while US crude was at $83.47 a barrel.

(With agency inputs)