Oil jumps 5% on Iran missile attack on Israel

Oil prices jumped nearly 5% after Iran fired dozens of missiles at Israel.

Sirens sounded across Israel, the Israeli military said, and rockets were intercepted and explosions were heard in the skies over occupied Jerusalem.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said the attack on Israel was in response to the killing of a Guard commander and other leaders, threatening “crushing attacks” if Israel responded to the rocket fire.

Brent crude rose 4.4% to $74.86 a barrel at the time of writing, while US crude rose 4.9% to $71.51.

The Iranian News Agency published videos of missiles flying over the capital, Tehran.

Israel Hayom newspaper reported that take-offs and landings at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv have been halted.

A senior White House official said earlier today that the United States has indications that Iran is preparing to launch a ballistic missile attack on Israel soon.

Before the statement, oil prices were near their lowest level in two weeks after expectations of increased supplies and growth in global demand, which is currently experiencing some weakness, overshadowed fears of an escalation in the conflict in the Middle East and its impact on crude exports from the region.

A ministerial committee of the OPEC Plus producers group will meet tomorrow, Wednesday, to review market conditions, and no changes to production policies are expected.

OPEC Plus, which includes the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia, is set to raise production by 180,000 barrels per day each month starting in December.