Oil rises amid Middle East crisis as Asian markets rebound

Stock markets in Asia recovered after several days of heavy losses linked to the war in the Middle East. South Korea’s KOSPI, which had plunged by 12% on Tuesday, climbed by almost 10% on Thursday, Japan’s Nikkei rose 1.9%, and MSCI’s Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan jumped 2.7%.

Oil and gas prices continued to head higher as Tasnim reported that a US oil tanker in the northern Persian Gulf had been hit by a missile launched by Iranian forces. Brent crude gained 3.3% to $84 a barrel, UK gas was up almost 1% and European natural gas futures climbed about 2%.

Supply disruptions piled pressure on markets. Qatar suspended activity at its liquefied natural gas facilities and declared force majeure on exports, with a return to normal production volumes likely to take at least a month. China’s government instructed the country’s biggest refiners to halt diesel and gasoline exports immediately, after officials from the National Development and Reform Commission met refinery executives and called for a temporary suspension.

oil prices, brent crude, asian markets, kospi, nikkei, msci index, persian gulf, iran missile, qatar lng, force majeure