Oil jumps nearly 7%, Brent crude reaches $90 per barrel

Oil prices jumped by around 7% as airstrikes resumed in the Middle East, heightening concerns about shrinking supplies, while U.S. government data showed crude oil inventories falling to their lowest levels in several years. Brent crude futures rose $6.16, or 7.33%, to $90.25 per barrel, and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $5.40, or 6.81%, to $84.65 per barrel. Giovanni Stonifu, an analyst at UBS, said, “The resumption of military attacks in the Middle East, along with Iranian officials’ reaffirmation of their desire to control navigation through the Strait of Hormuz amid declining oil flows through the strait, are pushing oil prices higher once again.”