Oil prices rose further on Friday as fresh Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia deepened fears of more disruption to energy supplies from the Middle East. Brent crude futures gained 0.5% to $113.75 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures rose 0.7% to $100.13.
On Thursday, October 22, Brent had closed at its highest level since May 4. According to sources, Saudi state oil company Aramco ordered the evacuation of its headquarters in Dhahran on Thursday as a precaution following recent attacks on oil facilities.
Analysts at ING wrote in a note on Friday that oil and gas markets are deeply worried about a renewed escalation in the Gulf, which they described as now the most likely scenario. Linh Tran, an analyst at XS.com, said that if attacks continue and cause delivery delays, high prices would find firmer support.
The Saudi-led coalition said it shot down two ballistic missiles and two drones launched by the Houthis overnight into Friday, while Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree claimed four attacks inside Saudi Arabia in the past 48 hours. Those claims have not been independently verified.
For oil-importing countries such as Pakistan, the rise matters directly, since domestic fuel prices and the import bill track the global market.