Oil prices find support as conflict in the Middle East escalates

Brent’s price found some support after the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) struck oil and energy infrastructures at the Al Hudaydah port in Yemen.

PHOTO: A cargo vessel. Getty Images

The IDF deployed F35 fighter jets to conduct the air strike in Yemen on Saturday, it said. This move was in retaliation for a Houthi drone attack on Tel Aviv last week, which killed one civilian, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said.

The IDF struck oil facilities in the Yemeni port of Al Hudaydah, which is operated by the Iran-aligned Houthis.

“IDF fighter jets struck military targets of the Houthi terrorist regime in the area of the Al Hudaydah Port in Yemen in response to the hundreds of attacks carried out against the State of Israel,” the military forces said.

This marks the first direct Israeli attack on Yemen since October 2023 and a clear escalation of the Israel-Hamas conflict, bringing oil supply concerns back to the forefront.

“The [oil] market is trading higher… with rising tension in the Middle East likely providing some support,” two analysts from ING Bank said.

The Houthis have launched aggressive attacks at commercial vessels transiting critical maritime chokepoints in the Red Sea since mid-November last year as a measure against Israel’s military operations in the Gaza Strip.

By Aparupa Mazumder 

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