New attacks hit three commercial ships in the Gulf on Wednesday, with one of the vessels in flames as Iran pressed its campaign against its oil-exporting neighbours, threatening shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and plunging the global energy economy into crisis.
Oil prices surged higher by more that five percent in early trading and markets have see-sawed since the end of last month, when the United States and Israel attacked Iran, killed its supreme leader and plunged the Middle East into war.Â
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