Oil prices held over $100 a barrel as reports of increased supply from the Gulf were outweighed by signs that regional conflicts were merging, amplifying risks to key energy supply routes. Analysts said Iranian attacks on vessels traversing the Strait of Hormuz were increasing, and while Saudi-backed forces retook territory in Yemen from the Iran-backed Houthis, the latter group nevertheless remained able to launch attacks on Saudi sites and remained a threat to ships moving through the Bab el-Mandeb waterway.
Alleged Gulf involvement in conflicts in Sudan and Ethiopia also means that “instability will continue to ricochet in both directions,” an International Crisis Group expert wrote in Foreign Affairs, warning that “the overlapping conflicts and disputes will become harder to resolve.”