The Brent oil barrel, reference for Europe, exceeded the threshold of 95 dollars, with a slight daily advance of 0.5%, after a new round of attacks by the United States on Iranian territory that has triggered Tehran's retaliation with bombings against U.S. positions in the Middle East.
In parallel, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, reference in the United States, was above 90 dollars per barrel, although its quotation remained practically stable throughout the session.
The U.S. Central Command (Centcom) reported this Tuesday that its forces carried out attacks against facilities linked to the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard in several points of the country, following the latest series of bombings carried out by its troops against the Iranian island of Larek.
As a result of these actions, the number of fatalities in the Islamic Republic has increased to 18, according to authorities, who have specified that among the dead are four people attending a wedding in the town of Kohstak, in the south of the country.
In response, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has announced a series of attacks against U.S. interests in the area, mainly in areas near the Strait of Hormuz.
"The brave fighters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard have given a resounding response to the aggressors and, in their first action, shot down the 50th advanced MQ-9 drone of the invading U.S. Army, equipped with the new aerospace defense system," they assured in a statement.
For his part, U.S. President Donald Trump has stated that he "doesn't care at all" if Tehran signs an agreement and has rejected trying to "force Iran to sit at the negotiating table with these new attacks." Furthermore, the occupant of the White House has indicated that Washington has "almost total" control of the Strait of Hormuz.
"I like our current position much better, with almost total control of the Strait of Hormuz and its economy in complete collapse. They are simply living the inevitable," the president pointed out in a message on social media.
Just over a week ago, the United States launched an economic offensive aimed at cutting all funding channels for Iran within the so-called 'Economic D-Day', which seeks the complete isolation of the Iranian economy, an operation dubbed 'Economic Pariah'.
As part of this strategy, the U.S. Department of the Treasury directed its first action against Misr Bank, the second most important financial entity in Egypt, to block its Emirati subsidiary's access to the U.S. financial system due to its alleged commercial ties with Iran.
G20 Summit and tensions over the Strait of Hormuz
The meeting of finance ministers and central bank governors of the G20, held in the U.S. city of Asheville, concluded this Tuesday with the release of a joint statement to reinforce global economic growth, although China decided to partially distance itself due to the tone used in the text.
One of the points of disagreement, rejected by Beijing, was the paragraph that called for "free, safe, and predictable navigation through the Strait of Hormuz" and the "efficient and smooth functioning of key value chains, such as those of energy, food, fertilizers, and critical minerals".