Brent climbs above $116 as Houthi attacks rattle Middle East oil
What's new: The US authorized up to 400,000 barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as shipping and pipeline risks widened.
Oil prices jumped Friday to their highest settlement since April as Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia and an oil spill off the UAE raised fresh fears over Middle East supply. Brent crude settled at $116.72 a barrel, up $3.55, while US West Texas Intermediate closed at $103.27, up $3.80. Fighting has intensified between Saudi Arabia and the Iran-aligned Houthis, with the group claiming strikes on crude pumping stations, an Aramco facility and Riyadh airport in recent days. Shipping risks also deepened after a tanker strike near the UAE earlier this month and a spill detected off Umm Al Quwain. The US Energy Department separately authorized an emergency exchange of up to 400,000 barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to help Phillips 66's Lake Charles refinery in Louisiana.