US financial markets have been whipsawed as bond market fears grow, pushing Treasury yields to their highest levels in more than 20 years, and oil prices continue to fluctuate, despite the Nasdaq and S&P 500 hitting record peaks.
Wall Street closed lower on Wednesday as oil prices rose then fell due to renewed concerns about disruption to Middle East supplies.
Stocks fell after closing at record highs in the previous session on Tuesday, with yields on US government bonds climbing to 24-year highs as investors worried about the impact of high oil prices on inflation and interest rates.
Oil prices initially climbed on Wednesday following a warning that Iran appeared to be stepping up attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, before closing lower after International Energy Agency (IEA) member states said they were ready to release more strategic reserves.
IEA member countries said they stand ready to release additional oil from their reserves if necessary and will prioritise diesel due to tight supplies of the fuel, the head of the organisation said on Wednesday.
G7 countries, in coordination with the IEA, agreed last Friday to immediately release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil to ease global energy supply concerns caused by fallout from the United States-Iran war.
The latest announcement from the IEA calmed oil markets after prices had climbed on Wednesday following a report from UK Maritime Trade Operations.
The maritime agency said on Tuesday that there had been nine attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz this month, representing half of the September total in the waterway and the Gulf combined.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, however, repeated Washington’s claims that it was in control of the strait and that oil flows were at close to normal levels.
Oil exports from the Gulf have recovered significantly in recent days, despite a surge in attacks on ships around the Strait of Hormuz, maritime experts and trackers say.
Gulf oil flows, excluding Iran, recovered to more than 81 percent of pre-war levels in September, while crude exports from the wider Middle East exceeded pre-war levels on 14 days during the month, maritime intelligence firm Kpler reported.
However, the recovery has come as attacks on tankers increase and shipping companies face higher freight, insurance and security costs.
On Tuesday, 12 crew members on a Panama-flagged tanker were injured in an attack by an unknown projectile while crossing the Strait of Hormuz, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.
