Amid rising tension between Washington and Tehran, markets must also add into the mix the loss of barrels from sanctions-hobbled Iran and crisis-hit Venezuela, now also targeted by US sanctions.
Brent crude was up 33pc since the turn of the year before this month’s downturn, following President Trump’s decision in November last year to reimpose sanctions on the Islamic Republic, but this price rally had not seen any of the dramatic spikes of yesteryear, despite the scrapping of waivers in April.
