Crude Fades as Mideast Oil Supplies Dodge Escalating Conflict
- Saudi Arabia says it intercepted seven ballistic missiles
- U.S. benchmark crude surged almost 6 percent last week
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Oil backed down from a two-month high as mounting political tensions and outright conflict in the world’s biggest crude-producing region failed to disrupt supplies.
Futures fell 0.5 percent on Monday in New York, holding on to most of last week’s 5.7 percent advance. Iranian-backed Houthi rebels launched a missile attack on Saudi Arabia on Sunday that inflicted casualties but left the kingdom’s oil infrastructure untouched. The attack occurred against the backdrop of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visits with U.S. leaders who share his animus with Iran.