<span>STORY: Oil prices were on track to rise further on Monday, closing at their highest level in nearly four years before the weekend.</span><span>Oil prices climbed after the United States and Iran threatened to target energy facilities.</span><span>The conflict has nearly paralyzed shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, which carries nearly a fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas.</span><span>Zhdankov: “This is probably the worst crisis since the Arab oil embargo of the 1970s.”</span><span>Dmitry Zhdannikov is Reuters’ energy and commodities editor in London.</span><span>“The main issue facing the market is that Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil transits. But it doesn’t end there; beyond that, there has been extensive damage to oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates. Even if the Strait of Hormuz reopens tomorrow, it will take longer to restore normal supplies. We spoke to the head of Qatar Energy (CEO Saad) al-Kaabi’s boss said this week that he might not be able to supply gas to customers in Europe and Asia for three to five years, which tells you something about what’s going on in the grand scheme of things.”</span><span>Brent crude oil May futures settled more than 3% higher at $112.19 a barrel on Friday, the highest level since July 2022.</span>
