Oil Prices Jump to Highest Since May as Middle East Tensions Escalate

Oil prices surged to their highest level since May as Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and tanker strikes stoked supply concerns.

• Brent futures rose 3.08% to $112.17 per barrel, its highest level since May 18, while US WTI gained 2.76% to $99.83.
• Houthi attacks killed at least two people at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam and two at a Shaybah oil field facility in Saudi Arabia.
• Iran's Revolutionary Guard navy said it set fire to four tankers in the northern Gulf, with Iranian media reporting explosions in the Sirik area.
• The US State Department ordered some diplomats and their families to leave its Saudi Arabia missions and plans to withdraw families from other regional missions.
• Saudi Aramco evacuated its Dhahran headquarters and switched to remote work after the attacks, six sources told Reuters.
• A ministerial meeting is scheduled for Friday in Istanbul to discuss the escalation, including Yemen and the Strait of Hormuz.
• Qatar's Foreign Ministry condemned the Houthi attack on King Fahd International Airport as a serious violation of Saudi sovereignty.
• Aramco's Dhahran headquarters evacuation is the first ordered since the Iranian war began, according to Reuters.
• The Houthis had previously damaged the Aramco headquarters earlier this month, with fire spreading across several floors.