Oil inches closer to $100 per barrel as Iran strikes US targets in Jordan

Oil prices have risen for a fourth consecutive session, nearing $100 per barrel, due to escalating tensions between the US and Iran. According to the BBC News, Iran launched missiles at a US base in Jordan, with Jordan's air defence systems shooting down 18 of the 20 missiles. Two missiles fell in unpopulated areas.

The conflict began when US forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil tankers after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targeted a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice in two days. The US had previously struck Iranian oil tankers in response to IRGC attacks on American naval vessels.

The US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, warned Tehran that the US will continue to strike Iranian oil tankers if it attacks US naval vessels. Iranian state media reported that multiple ballistic missiles had been launched from several cities across Iran toward what it described as hostile US targets. Oil prices rose in early trading in Asia, with benchmark Brent crude up by 1.5% at $99.41 a barrel, and US-traded oil 1.6% higher at $94.55, according to BBC News.

Brief written by urgent.news from Times of India, Ajel English, Live Mint, BBC News, CNBC World — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.