Oil rises as Iran tension reignites supply woes

Bloomberg

Oil pushed higher as Iran’s threats to retaliate over a seized crude tanker and problems with a North Sea pipeline kept investors wary of potential supply disruptions.
Futures gained as much as 1.7 percent in New York on Monday. European powers urged Iran to reverse its decision to breach the levels of uranium enrichment permitted under the 2015 nuclear accord. Tensions remain high after British forces seized
a tanker carrying Iranian crude near Gibraltar last week, prompting BP Plc to divert a vessel in the Persian Gulf out of fear it would be
targeted in response.
Emergency repairs to Ineos Group Ltd.’s North Sea pipeline system also reduced flows and helped drive prices higher. Oil fell last week as concern that global demand will keep deteriorating outweighed a decision by Opec and allies to extend production cuts into 2020. While US-China discussions are starting up again, the White House has warned that reaching an agreement will take time. Investors are also waiting for Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony to Congress this week, which may offer clarity on rate cuts.
“The oil market is caught in a bind and does not know which way to go or trend,”
said Stephen Brennock, an analyst at PVM Oil Associates Ltd. in London.