Oil prices rose more than 2% on Friday after Iranian news agencies reported that a state-owned oil tanker was bombed, possibly two missiles, in the Red Sea near Saudi Arabia.
According to the official IRNA news agency, Iranian state television reported that the oil tanker "Sabity" owned by the National Oil Company, was bombed as it passed sixty miles from the Saudi port of Jeddah.
Prices rose substantially on hopes of a breakthrough in trade talks between China and the United States.
The price of Brent crude rose to about $ 60.5 a barrel, while the price of Texas crude oil rose to about $ 55.
The Iranian news agency ISNA quoted unnamed sources as saying that the tanker suffered severe damage and oil spills in the Red Sea, while Iranian state television did not rule out that the incident was the result of a "terrorist attack."
The news of the Iranian oil tanker incident follows the September 14 attack on two oil processing facilities in Saudi Arabia, disrupting half of Saudi Arabia's crude production (5% of world production) and causing a jump in oil prices.
Tensions in the Middle East have escalated following attacks in recent months on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the main shipping lanes for the global oil trade.