Oil Rises as Hospital Blast Ratchets Up Middle East Tensions
- Iran calls for Muslim nations to cut off crude to Israel
- Cushing stockpiles at 2014 lows, near operational minimums
An injured Palestinian child is carried inside the Nasser hospital in Khan Yunis in Gaza Strip on Oct. 17.
Photographer: Mahmud Hams/AFP/Getty Images
Oil rose after Iran called for an embargo against Israel by Muslim countries, following a deadly explosion at a Gaza hospital that raised the risk of wider hostilities in the Middle East.
West Texas Intermediate settled above $88 a barrel after earlier leaping to $90 on increased geopolitical tensions. Iran’s foreign minister called for a full and immediate boycott of Israel by Muslim countries, including an oil embargo on the country. While Israel’s oil imports are small in the context of global supply, and little of them come from the Middle East, the comments marked a verbal escalation over the war between Israel and Hamas.