Oil climbs over 2% on Sept 14 after Saudi and Hormuz attacks
Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline closure threatens up to 4% of global oil supply, while Gulf-Iran talks on Hormuz in Oman are postponed
- Oil prices, including Brent and WTI crude, surged by over 2% on September 14 in response to escalating geopolitical risks in the Middle East.
- The price hike was driven by Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, which included a drone strike that shut down the critical East-West pipeline, threatening up to 4% of global oil supply.
- Attacks on commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz, coupled with the postponement of security talks between Gulf countries and Iran, further contributed to market instability.
- Heightened supply concerns were also fueled by Houthi movements to control the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, another major oil transit waterway.
Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained more than 2% in early trading on Monday (September 14, 2026), following renewed Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia and Iranian attacks on ships in the Gulf.
Brent traded at US$107.51 a barrel, up US$2.90 or 2.77%, at 6.13am Thailand time on September 14. WTI was up US$2.27, or 2.27%, at US$102.32 a barrel at the same time.
Oil prices initially climbed more than 3% when trading opened. The latest gains followed an 8% rise over the preceding week, when supply disruptions pushed crude above US$100 a barrel for the first time since July.
Saudi pipeline closure threatens up to 4% of global oil supply
The closure of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline threatens up to 4% of global oil supply. The pipeline was shut on Friday (September 11) following a drone strike that originated in Iraq.
Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, had used the East-West pipeline to reroute exports away from the Strait of Hormuz, making the shutdown a further setback for supplies already exposed to attacks on Gulf shipping.
Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis reached Perim island on September 11 as they moved to tighten control over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The waterway has carried 4–5% of global oil supply in recent months, adding another major transit route to the market’s concerns.
Saudi media reports damage from Houthi strike in Jazan
Saudi state media released footage on Sunday (September 13) showing damage to homes and a mosque in the southern province of Jazan, which it attributed to a Houthi attack.
The Houthis also claimed to have struck a Saudi military base in a province neighbouring Jazan.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), the British maritime security agency, reported on September 13 that a projectile had hit a vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz, starting a fire and forcing the evacuation of its crew.
Iran reported that one person had been killed and four crew members wounded aboard an Iranian commercial vessel struck off the country’s coast.
Oman announces postponement of Gulf-Iran talks on Hormuz
Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi announced on X on September 13 that the meeting between Gulf countries and Iran scheduled for Monday (September 14) in Oman had been postponed. The discussions were intended to address the Strait of Hormuz.
In a note issued earlier on September 13, IG market analyst Tony Sycamore warned that, unless talks in Oman produced practical results or the East-West pipeline restarted quickly, “the risk is that crude oil continues to extend its gains toward the $119.48 high of early March”.
No peace talks have been held in the six-month war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran since an interim agreement in June collapsed after a few weeks.
