Oil prices rose during trading on Wednesday, February 25, to trade near their highest levels in 7 months, amid investor concerns about a potential military conflict between the United States and Iran that could disrupt supplies, while there is anticipation for planned talks between the two sides on Thursday.
In trading, Brent crude futures rose by about 0.4% to $71.08 a barrel, while US crude futures increased by 0.5% to $65.96 a barrel.
Brent crude prices hit their highest level since July 31 on Friday, while West Texas Intermediate crude prices reached their highest level since August 4 on Monday.
Crude oil prices hovered near those levels as the United States strengthened its military presence in the Middle East to force Iran to negotiate an end to its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Any outbreak of conflict would disrupt supplies from Iran, the third-largest crude oil producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and other oil-producing countries in the Middle East region.
The US president says during his State of the Union address that Iran's missiles pose a threat to Europe and to US bases abroad.
Trump claims that Tehran is working on building missiles that will soon reach the United States.
US envoys Steve Wittkopf and Jared Kushner are scheduled to meet with an Iranian delegation for a third round of talks on Thursday in Geneva.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Tuesday that reaching an agreement with the United States was within reach, but only if diplomacy was given priority.
While geopolitical turmoil is supporting prices, the market is also facing concerns about a significant increase in inventories as global supply exceeds demand.
