Headlines

U.S. President Donald Trump promised "major military punishment" for Iran and its Houthi allies after the Yemeni fighters struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, extending the Middle East war to a second major shipping chokepoint. Fears that disruption could widen to block another sea route sent global oil prices surging in one of the steepest rises of the war. Brent crude rose more than 6%, piercing the level of $100 a barrel for the first time since May. Two weeks since the [Read more]

Oil headed for weekly gains on Friday, as Houthi attacks on tankers in the Red Sea sparked worries about the closure of a second shipping chokepoint, while Kazakhstan temporarily cut output after its main export route was forced to shut. Brent futures eased 72 cents, or 0.72%, to $99.97 a barrel as of 0126 GMT, but remained on course for a 13.5% advance this week. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures fell 70 cents, or 0.76%, to $91.49 a barrel, on track for a 10.9% weekly rise. Brent had [Read more]

TORONTO - Canadian and U.S. markets lost ground Thursday following a sharp increase in oil prices after attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.  Carol Schleif, chief market strategist at BMO Private Wealth, said that markets were facing a “wall of worry” with stocks seeing pressure from several factors, including higher oil prices and nervousness about the AI trade.  “It's important to take a step back and realize markets have done really well, year-to-date. The TSX was at [Read more]

CALGARY - Fuel costs are on the rise in Canada as geopolitical turmoil drives the price of crude oil to its highest level in more than a month.  Gasbuddy.com, which crowdsources pump price data from across Canada and the U.S, says the Canadian national average now sits above $1.80 a litre — a two-cent increase from a day earlier and an eight-cent bump from a week ago.  Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at Gasbuddy, says that could rise by another five to 10 cents over the [Read more]

U.S. President Donald Trump told Axios in an interview on Thursday that he is seriously considering restarting major combat operations in Iran, which could include larger strikes than those carried out during "Operaton Epic Fury," the news outlet reported. "They haven't received enough pain yet," Axios quoted Trump as saying, adding that Trump said he had not yet made a final decision. (Reporting by Ryan Patrick Jones in Toronto) [Read more]