By Ronnie Harui
Oil rose in Asia on Monday amid rising tensions related to the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway through which one-fifth of the world's oil is typically transported.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps boarded two container ships near the Strait, the country's Tasnim news agency said on Sunday. The vessels, identified as MSC Francesca and Epaminondas, are anchored near the channel, according to Tasnim and ship-tracking data. Meanwhile, the U.S. stopped an Iranian-flagged oil tanker last Friday, as Washington maintains its blockade of Iranian ports on the Strait.
Risks of further supply disruptions are escalating as President Trump said Sunday that Iran has about three days before the country's oil pipelines risk explosion from being clogged up. Shipments from Iranian ports have been halted during the U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. This means Iran has to store its oil, but the country's storage capacity is limited.
"The energy markets remain on edge as the U.S. is enforcing a strict naval blockade to pressure Tehran," Commerzbank Research analysts said in a research report. Also, "Trump ordered the U.S. Navy to target any boats attempting to place mines in the Strait of Hormuz," the analysts added.
Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures rose 2.1% to $96.42 per barrel and front-month Brent crude oil futures gained 2.3% to $107.71 a barrel, ICE data showed.
Meanwhile, Asian equity markets rose after both the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq indexes posted record closing highs last Friday. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average edged 0.2% higher, led by electronics stocks, while South Korea's Kospi added 1.4%.
U.S. equities have "held firm, complicating the USD outlook and highlighting a potential regime shift: energy shocks now bite assets unevenly, with AI-led equities showing unusual resilience," two FX strategists at OCBC Group Research said in a research report.
The U.S. Dollar Index was up 0.1% at 98.597, LSEG data showed.
Write to Ronnie Harui at ronnie.harui@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 26, 2026 20:50 ET (00:50 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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