Brent holds above $100 as tanker attacks dampen hopes for Hormuz traffic recovery

Brent crude futures stood at $102.15 a barrel on Thursday, up about 1%, according to Business Recorder, extending a move that had lifted the benchmark above $100 the previous session. Traders were bracing for more supply disruption after Iran and the United States staged their heaviest attacks on shipping yet in a conflict now six months old. West Texas Intermediate gained 1.51% to $97.50 a barrel.

Brent has climbed nearly 30% from its early August lows, after a lasting truce between Washington and Tehran failed to take hold and fighting resumed later that month. PVM analyst John Evans said the recent price run shows the market now expects the conflict to outlast earlier forecasts, and that prices stay high if exports shrink. President Donald Trump warned the United States could strike Iran's Pickaxe Mountain and said the war may continue beyond the November midterm elections.

Iran said it had struck 10 vessels near the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, following the U.S. sinking of five Iranian oil tankers, and the Revolutionary Guards pledged a stronger response to further attacks. Oil flows through the strait, which carried about a fifth of worldwide oil and gas supplies before the conflict, remain far below pre-war levels. ING analysts said rising Chinese purchases could magnify any disruption, while a drop in imports could cap the rally.