Israel attacks Iran: Oil shares tank, prices soar

Crude oil prices have jumped by nearly 11 per cent after Israel attacked Iran in the early hours of Friday.

The Brent crude’s futures jumped by 12.86 per cent to $78.31 and WTI crude’s futures were up 10.95 per cent to $75.49 at the time of writing the story.

Israel struck several sites in Iran associated with the military and the country’s nuclear programme. It also appeared to have attacked homes of senior commanders and other officials in what apparent targeted assassinations. The strikes have sparked fears of a full-scale war in West Asia.

Any conflict in West Asia is bound to upset the world’s energy supply and global trade. West Asia supplies as much as 40 per cent of world’s oil and around a third of all cargo of the world passes through the region.

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As was seen in the aftermath of the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war, Iran-supported groups in the region, such as Yemen’s Houthis, could disrupt the maritime trade and lead to further increase in prices.

This is a developing story. It will be updated as details emerge.