- media@moneyinfocus.news
Crude oil traded above US$79 per barrel on Wednesday, extending gains for a third consecutive session and reaching its highest level in about one month as escalating tensions in the Middle East continued to raise concerns over global energy supplies.
The latest advance followed another round of U.S. military strikes against Iran and the reinstatement of a naval blockade targeting Iranian ports near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important maritime routes for oil and liquefied natural gas exports.
According to U.S. officials, American forces carried out a seven-hour operation targeting dozens of military assets along Iran’s coastline and near the strategic waterway. The operation was aimed at reducing Tehran’s ability to disrupt commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.
President Donald Trump said military operations would continue until Iran ends attacks on commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz and agrees to reopen the shipping corridor.
Separately, Trump said on Tuesday that he had abandoned plans to impose a 20% fee on cargo transported through the Strait of Hormuz. The president said potential revenue from the measure would be outweighed by future investments from Gulf countries in the United States.
The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints, handling a significant share of global seaborne crude oil and liquefied natural gas exports.
