Houthi attacks: Oil price rises by 3% as BP halts shipments via Red Sea

Brent crude oil price rose by 3.16 percent on Monday amid reports BP, a British oil and gas company, halted all shipments through the Red Sea.

The decision was made amid increased attacks by Houthi militants in Yemen on commercial vessels on the Red Sea.

During business hours on Monday, Brent crude price rose to $79.30 a barrel from $76.87 reported on Sunday.

On Saturday, Houthi issued a warning to foreign shipping companies not to do business with Israeli ports, saying they would target all ships going to Israel — regardless of their country.

The Houthis have waded into the Israel-Hamas conflict, attacking vessels in crucial shipping lanes on the Red Sea and shooting drones and missiles at Israel.

Last Tuesday, Houthi militants had hit a Norwegian fuel tanker on grounds that it was delivering crude oil to an Israeli terminal.

Speaking on the issue in a statement on Monday, BP said the decision was made as the security situation for shipping in the Red Sea became worse.

“In light of the deteriorating security situation for shipping in the Red Sea, BP has decided to temporarily pause all transits through the Red Sea,” BP said. 

“We will keep this precautionary pause under ongoing review, subject to circumstances as they evolve in the region.”

The oil giant is the latest company to pause transit through the sea.

Shipping giants MSC, Hapag-Lloyd, CMA CGM and Maersk had taken similar steps.