Oil prices rise on fears Gulf war is escalating

Oil prices rose on growing fears of the Middle East conflict metastasizing and further constricting global energy flows.

Talks between Gulf nations and Iran due to be held today were called off, fighting in Yemen intensified — raising fears of a closure of the Bab el-Mandeb waterway in addition to restrictions to maritime traffic via the Strait of Hormuz — and Saudi Arabia closed a critical pipeline following drone attacks.

Iran and its proxies have in recent weeks sought to “upend any minimal sense of stability in the region,” The New York Times noted, while a leading US analyst warned that “horizontal escalation” where the conflict spread beyond its current borders meant that current unrest had “at least months more to go.”