Oil prices rise on fears of Israel-Iran standoff and U.S. storm By Reuters

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil prices rose in early Asian trade on Thursday on concerns about potential supply disruptions in the Middle East, with Israel planning to hit oil producer Iran and on rising demand for the fuel as a major storm has entered Florida.

Futures were up 37 cents, or 0.5 percent, at $76.95 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were up 35 cents, or 0.5 percent, at 73 $.59 a barrel at 0034 GMT.

The world’s largest oil producer and consumer was hit by a second major storm, Hurricane Milton, which slammed into Florida’s west coast, spawning tornadoes and threatening tidal surges.

The storm has already led to increased demand for gasoline in the state, with about a quarter of gas stations running out of stock, which has helped support crude oil prices.

Further supporting prices, investors remained alert to a potential escalation in tensions between Israel and Iran, with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant promising that an Israeli strike against Iran would be “lethal, precise and surprising.”

US President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about Israel’s plans on Iran in a 30-minute call that the White House described as “direct and very productive” on Wednesday.

Even with threats to the oil-producing Middle East region, weak demand continues to support the fundamental outlook. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) on Tuesday downgraded its demand forecast for 2025 due to weakening economic activity in China and North America.

EIA data on Wednesday showed crude oil inventories rose by 5.8 million barrels to 422.7 million barrels last week. That was a bigger increase than analysts polled by Reuters had expected, but much smaller than the American Petroleum Institute industry group had forecast on Tuesday.