LONDON: Oil prices jumped about 5% on Thursday, with Brent crude rising above $106 a barrel as increased attacks on commercial shipping since the Iran war began heightened concerns about disruptions to global energy supplies.
Brent crude futures rose $5.39, or 5%, to $106.60 a barrel by 1249 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $5.16, or 5.37%, to $101.21 for the first time since May.
Brent has risen more than 30% from lows reached in early August after diplomatic efforts to secure a lasting US-Iran ceasefire failed and fighting resumed.
The latest price surge followed attacks on commercial shipping around the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global oil and gas supplies.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency said it had received reports of several merchant vessels being struck by disabling fire in the Gulf of Oman.
Iraqi port officials said the tanker New Andros, carrying about two million barrels of fuel oil, caught fire after being hit by a drone in Iraqi waters. No casualties were reported among its 22 crew members.
Also Read: Brent Crude Rises Above $100 a Barrel as Middle East Conflict Intensifies
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply since the fighting intensified. Preliminary data from Kpler showed only six commodity vessels passed through the waterway on Tuesday, compared with a 10-day average of about 12.
Rystad Energy chief economist Claudio Galimberti said 8 million to 9 million barrels per day had moved through the strait in the week before fighting resumed on August 30. More recently, flows had fallen below 2 million barrels per day.
Trump warns Iran
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday warned Iran against activity at the fortified Pickaxe Mountain site near the damaged Natanz uranium enrichment facility.
“We notice there’s a little activity at Pickaxe. I would advise Iran not to get cute because we will have to hit them very hard,” Trump said at a Republican midterm convention in Dallas.
Trump on Iran:
There’s another place called Pickaxe Mountain, another nice place. We may have to give them a shot there too. pic.twitter.com/eZvP6ux8cj
— Clash Report (@clashreport) September 10, 2026
Trump also said the war with Iran would end “immediately” after the US midterm elections in November, without explaining why he expected Tehran to end the conflict at that point.
“I think the war’s going to end immediately after the election because they can’t hold out any longer,” Trump told reporters before travelling to Dallas for a Republican Party midterm convention.
Also Read: Iran War Will End ‘Immediately’ After US Midterm Elections: Trump
“They’re desperate to try and affect the election,” Trump said, accusing Iran of seeking to influence the vote.
Trump also said US energy prices, which have risen sharply during the conflict, would fall after the midterm elections.
“Right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward,” he said. “We’ll get them down, I think for gasoline, we’ll get them below $2 a gallon.”
NEW: President Trump insisting gas prices will fall below $2 a gallon after the midterms, saying current high prices are the cost of keeping Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
“Right after the election, oil prices are going to be tumbling downward. They’re going to be… pic.twitter.com/qGZk8mSpBU
— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 9, 2026
The conflict, which began in February, has pushed up energy prices and emerged as an increasingly important political issue for Trump and his Republican Party ahead of the November midterm elections.
US, Iran exchange attacks
The United States and Iran have continued to exchange attacks, while diplomatic efforts to permanently end the conflict through dialogue have yet to produce a lasting agreement.
The US military said on Wednesday that it had destroyed 10 Iranian oil tankers over the past week, as Iran claimed attacks on US vessels and commercial shipping in the Gulf.
Also Read: Trump Warns Iran against Provocation, Threatens Strike on Pickaxe Mountain
US Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, also rejected an Iranian claim that its forces had struck two US Navy destroyers.
“No US Navy warship has been struck; all IRGC attempted attacks failed,” CENTCOM said in a statement.
CENTCOM said the 10 Iranian tankers were part of a “multibillion-dollar shadow network” that finances Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
🚫 CLAIM: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces have claimed they struck two U.S. Navy destroyers operating in the Middle East. This is completely FALSE.
✅ FACT: No U.S. Navy warship has been struck; all IRGC attempted attacks failed. Meanwhile, U.S. forces… pic.twitter.com/yfC4OcwZ1f
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) September 9, 2026
The latest US announcement follows the destruction of five Iranian crude oil carriers on Tuesday.
CENTCOM said its forces destroyed the vessels after the IRGC targeted a US Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over two days.
Also Read: US Forces Destroy 10 Iranian Oil Tankers: CENTCOM Claims
The US military said the warship successfully evaded both attacks and that no American personnel were harmed.
According to CENTCOM, the vessels destroyed on Tuesday were the Kaviz, Charminar, Horizon 1, Riesco and Derya. Four were struck in the Gulf of Oman and one near Iran’s Kharg Island.
CENTCOM forces destroyed five Iranian crude oil carriers, Sept. 8, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) targeted a U.S. Navy warship with ballistic missiles twice over the past two days. The U.S. warship successfully evaded the attempted Iranian attacks and… pic.twitter.com/Gi8a2tloN1
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) September 8, 2026
CENTCOM said American forces ordered the crews to abandon the vessels before they were struck and rendered inoperable. The command said Iran had used the tankers as part of a shadow network to finance the IRGC and its regional proxies.
CENTCOM had previously said it destroyed three other Iranian crude oil carriers on September 7 after the IRGC attempted to attack a US aircraft carrier and a guided-missile destroyer.
An E/A-18G aircraft launches from the flight deck of USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) during night flight operations while the ship supports enforcement of the U.S. blockade against Iran in the Arabian Sea. As of Sept. 7, CENTCOM forces have redirected 94 commercial vessels,… pic.twitter.com/yEQ7oKC5Jo
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) September 7, 2026
Iran warns of ‘unique’ response to US
Iran has meanwhile warned the United States against continuing its attacks.
Brigadier General Ramezan Sharif, a senior Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps adviser and former spokesman, said Iran was monitoring the region and warned that further US attacks could trigger “unique” Iranian responses.
IRGC warns of more ‘unique’ surprises if enemy continues aggressionhttps://t.co/cPEWx2Preu
— Press TV 🔻 (@PressTV) September 9, 2026
Speaking to state broadcaster Press TV, Sharif described the Strait of Hormuz as a strategic and deterrent weapon for Iran.
He said the United States and Israel would eventually have to accept what he called the “realities on the ground”.
Meanwhile, Iranian state news agency Fars also reported that an explosion was heard off the southern port city of Jask. It said the sound appeared to have come from the sea but gave no details about its cause.
Iran’s IRGC said on Wednesday that its naval forces had attacked two US vessels and eight oil tankers in the Gulf in retaliation for the US destruction of the five Iranian tankers.
The IRGC said the attacks had inflicted heavy damage. It did not identify the US vessels or the tankers it said were targeted.
The IRGC also said its forces had targeted 10 other vessels attempting to enter what it described as a “prohibited and unsafe” area of the Strait of Hormuz.
CENTCOM rejected the claim that any US Navy warship had been hit. The US military said all attempted Iranian attacks on its warships had failed.
Attacks on commercial ships in Hormuz
The latest confrontation has extended the conflict beyond military targets to commercial shipping around the Strait of Hormuz.
Reuters reported that Iran attacked 10 ships after the US destroyed the five Iranian tankers. The attacks marked the biggest declared wave of tit-for-tat strikes on shipping by the two sides since the war began.
The oil products tanker Hercules Star was attacked while at anchor off Dubai, according to its charterer Peninsula. One crew member was killed and another was missing. Maritime security sources, cited by Reuters, said the vessel may have been hit by a drone.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) said it had received reports of several merchant vessels being struck by disabling fire in the Gulf of Oman.
Iraqi port officials said a tanker carrying about two million barrels of fuel oil, the New Andros, caught fire after being struck by a drone in Iraqi waters. The vessel had 22 crew members and no casualties were reported, according to Reuters.
The escalation has intensified concerns over the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial global oil shipping route between Iran and Oman.
The waterway normally carries a significant share of the world’s oil and gas shipments. But traffic has fallen sharply since the conflict escalated.
Iran has largely choked off transit through the strait, while Washington has imposed a blockade of Iranian ports. The United States says it has been able to guide tankers through the waterway.
Reuters reported that preliminary data showed only six ships with active transponders had crossed the strait during a recent 24-hour period.
