![\"Oil](\"https:\/\/shipandbunker.cdn.speedyrails.net\/a\/img\/_asp_d6afe34881134d19842789dd7a5fe7d4.v.640.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\tMeanwhile, supertanker rates could soar even further on geopolitical tensions: File Image\/Pixabay<\/p>\n
\n\tOil on Friday logged an impressive weekly gain<\/a>\u00a0of over 5 percent on growing suspicion the U.S.\u00a0will abandon any diplomacy over the next 10 days and strike Iran with the intention of forcing a regime change.<\/p>\n \n\tBrent was up 5.5 percent for the week and West Texas Intermediate gained 5.4 percent; Brent for the day settled up 10 cents to $71.76 per barrel and WTI settled down 4 cents to $66.39.<\/p>\n \n\tThe dip was somewhat surprising considering tensions between Washington and Tehran have reached the flashpoint, with the latter reportedly planning a joint naval exercise with Russia; this was in the wake of the Islamic republic closing the Strait of Hormuz for military drills.<\/p>\n \u201c<\/p>\n \n\tWe continue to see room for further upside<\/p>\n Ole Hvalbye, analyst, SEB<\/p>\n \n\tBloomberg noted<\/a>\u00a0that the U.S. is carrying out the biggest military buildup in the region since 2003, before the invasion of Iraq, and\u00a0 “That suggests [U.S. president Donald] Trump may launch a far more sweeping campaign than the overnight attack against Iran’s nuclear program last June.”<\/p>\n \n\tStill, “Market focus has clearly shifted to escalating Middle East tensions after the failure of multiple rounds of U.S.-Iran nuclear talks, even as investors debate whether any actual disruption will materialise,” said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova.<\/p>\n \n\tOle Hvalbye, an analyst at SEB, added, “Despite this morning’s minor pullback, we continue to see room for further upside under the current geopolitical backdrop.”<\/p>\n \n\tIf nothing else, the ratcheting up of tensions could cause rates in the supertanker market to soar: according to data from the Baltic Exchange, the daily rate for hiring a supertanker on the key Middle East-to-China route has jumped<\/a>\u00a0 threefold since the beginning of the year to over $150,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tAnoop Singh, global head of shipping research at Oil Brokerage Ltd, said, “Military action in the Middle East will likely take VLCC rates to levels not seen since 2019.”<\/p>\n