Oil prices climb as Brent tops $101 amid Hormuz tensions

Oil prices surged on Wednesday as market participants weighed the impact of heightened activity through the Strait of Hormuz alongside escalating Iranian attacks on vessels. Brent crude futures surged 93 cents, or 0.92 percent, to $101.51 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate climbed 82 cents, or 0.92 percent, to $90.25. Tim Waterer, chief analyst at KCM Trade, expressed apprehension about potential supply disruptions due to a storm approaching oil and gas production zones in the Gulf of Mexico.

Waterer cautioned that the storm introduces an "unwelcome complication" given the existing supply-side pressures, which could lead to production and refining outages. The storm might affect six refineries, with Gulf Coast states housing roughly half of the U.S. refining capacity of 18.2 million barrels per day. Recent data from the American Petroleum Institute, as reported by market sources, indicated a decline in crude oil and gasoline inventories last week, while distillate stocks experienced a slight increase, with crude inventories dropping by 2.09 million barrels in the week ending October 2.