Oil prices surge amid US-Israel attack on Iran

Oil prices surged on Monday and shares slid as military conflict in the Middle East looked set to last weeks, threatening to upend a global economic recovery and perhaps reignite inflation, Reuters writes.

Brent jumped 6.4% to $77.57 a barrel, though it had briefly topped $82.00 at one stage, while U.S. crude climbed 6.2% to $71.17 per barrel. Safe-haven gold rose 1.6% to $5,360 an ounce.

All eyes were on the Strait of Hormuz where around a fifth of the world’s seaborne oil trade flows and 20% of its liquefied natural gas. While the vital waterway has not yet been blocked, marine tracking sites showed tankers piling up on either side of the strait wary of attack or maybe unable to get insurance for the voyage.