00:00Now here are some international updates. Oil prices settled up about 9% on Thursday, at their highest in nearly
00:06four years as Iran stepped up attacks on oil and transport facilities across the Middle East and the country supremely
00:13devout to keep the vital strait of Hormuz shut.
00:16Brand futures settled at $100.46 a barrel, up $8.48 or 9.2%.
00:26The market is seriously unbalanced, and that will continue until the strait is reopened and upstream and downstream operations return
00:33to normal.
00:34However, Vice President and Global Head of Crude Oil Research at S&P Global Energy Jim Burkhardt said it will
00:40not happen quickly.
00:41US Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC on Thursday that the US Navy could not escort ships through the Strait
00:48of Hormuz now, but it was quite likely that could happen by the end of the month.
00:53Global oil prices are unlikely to hit $200 a barrel, Wright said, even as Iran continues to strike merchant ships.
01:01Middle East Gulf countries have cut total oil production by at least 10 million barrels per day, a volume equalling
01:07almost 10% of world demand, the IEA said in its latest monthly oil market report.
01:13Middle East refineries have also shut in 2.35 million barrels per day of crude and condensate refining capacity, consultants
01:22IRR said.
01:24Saudi Arabia has ramped up crude exports from its Red Sea port of Yanbu in recent days.
01:30China has ordered an immediate ban on refined fuel exports in March, a further step of pre-empt a potential
01:36domestic fuel shortage caused by the Middle East conflict, sources said on Thursday.
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