Oil rises as Saudi Airport and tanker attacks stoke supply fears

Published Mon, Oct 12, 2026 · 07:04 AM

OIL edged higher as renewed strikes on Saudi Arabia’s main airport and a fresh tanker attack near the Strait of Hormuz raised the prospect that intensifying hostilities could exacerbate supply risks.

Brent crude was near US$105 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate traded around US$92.

King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh came under attack again on Sunday (Oct 11) by Iran-backed Houthi militants, a day after a strike killed 12 people.

A drone hit a tanker near the Sohar anchorage off Oman, outside the strait, the same day, according to UK Maritime Trade Operations.

The global benchmark is up more than 70 per cent this year as the US-Iran war drags on with no clear signs of resolution.

Major Middle Eastern oil producers have managed to resume crude exports through Hormuz close to pre-conflict levels, but the spike in tanker attacks and heightened tensions across the region could threaten those flows.

Separately, President Donald Trump said Russia and Ukraine had agreed to an “energy ceasefire” effective immediately.

Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries have disrupted the country’s refining capacity and contributed to tighter global diesel supplies.

Late last week, Trump said he was working with Vladimir Putin to release Russian diesel into the market.

Elsewhere, traders were monitoring the fallout from Hurricane Isaias, which knocked out power in three US states and killed at least four people.

The Department of Energy said it approved an emergency exchange of up to 4 million barrels of crude from strategic stockpiles to ease supply disruptions. BLOOMBERG