CNBC reports:

Crude oil prices rose sharply Thursday, as Iran ramped up its attacks on tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz and Hurricane Isaias threatened U.S. offshore production in the Gulf of Mexico.

Brent crude futures, the international benchmark, gained 4% to close at $104.28 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures advanced 3.6% to settle at $91.49 per barrel.

Nine tankers have come under attack in and around Hormuz over the past week, jeopardizing the recent recovery in crude oil flows through the strait

Oil prices backed off session highs after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would not attack Iran before the November midterm elections. NBC News, citing unnamed sources, reported earlier that Trump and his national security team were considering renewing strikes in the coming weeks.

Some 9.5 million barrels per day exited Hormuz during the week ended Tuesday, about 30% below normal levels before the Iran war, according to Kpler data. Crude flows from the Middle East, including pipeline workarounds, stood at 16.4 million bpd which is nearly equivalent to prewar levels.

In the Gulf of Mexico, oil companies have shut in about 500,000 bpd, or 25% of offshore production in the region, as Hurricane Isaias churns toward the coasts of Alabama, Mississippi and the Florida panhandle. [Continue reading…]