15.09.202617:44:50UTC+00Gasoline Rises to Eight-Week High

US gasoline futures climbed above $3.45 per gallon, reaching an eight-week high, as markets reacted to a tightening outlook for energy supplies from the Middle East. Attacks last week by Iran-backed Houthi rebels shut down a key crude oil pipeline in Saudi Arabia that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz, which itself remains under blockade.

Since the onset of the US–Iran conflict, the crack spread has jumped from the teens to above $60, signaling that demand for refined products is outstripping refiners’ production capacity. Refiners had long warned about the consequences of dwindling crude inventories. Although they are operating close to full capacity, delays to non-essential work have aggravated an existing maintenance backlog ahead of the typical autumn maintenance season, heightening risks to refined-product supply.

UK authorities have warned that the pipeline could remain out of service for up to six weeks. However, US Energy Secretary Wright told reporters that it would reopen “very soon.”