The U.S.-Iran conflict is intensifying as Iran launches attacks on oil facilities in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and targets the U.S. embassy in Baghdad. However, international oil prices have plunged by over 3% following reports of a substantial increase in U.S. crude oil inventories.
As of 12:00 a.m. on Wednesday, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures were trading at 92.95 USD per barrel, down 3.39%.
Brent crude futures also declined by 2.36%, reaching 100.98 USD per barrel.
On the same day, Iran escalated its attacks on U.S. assets, striking oil facilities in the UAE and launching drone attacks on the U.S. embassy in Baghdad, Iraq.
Despite these developments, oil prices have fallen due to the significant surge in U.S. crude oil inventories.
The American Petroleum Institute reported that U.S. crude oil inventories increased by 6.56 million barrels for the week ending on March 13. This figure far exceeds Reuters’ forecast of a 380,000-barrel increase.
As a result, WTI has experienced a sharp decline of over 3%.