Oil prices climb after Houthis claim strike on Saudi Arabia's biggest refinery

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December Brent crude futures rose 1.2% to $115.19 a barrel as Saudi authorities have yet to confirm the claimed missile strike

Anadolu / Getty Images

Yemen's Houthi militants said they struck Saudi Arabia's Ras Tanura refinery with a ballistic missile this week, and oil prices rose on Wednesday, according to The Wall Street Journal

December Brent crude futures were up 1.2% at $115.19 per barrel on Wednesday. December West Texas Intermediate futures were 1.8% higher at $101.65 per barrel.

Neither the claimed strike nor any damage to the refinery has been confirmed by Saudi authorities, according to The Wall Street Journal. Aramco, the facility's operator, had not replied to an inquiry seeking its response, according to The Wall Street Journal. The refinery can process 550,000 barrels daily and lies in the Eastern Province, among txhe kingdom's primary hubs for exporting crude, according to The Wall Street Journal.

A Saudi-led military coalition that includes Bahrain and Egypt said its air defenses shot down three ballistic missiles fired at the Eastern Province, along with four drones headed for the southern region, according to The Wall Street Journal. Saudi Arabia's Civil Defense said a further Houthi attack, which was also intercepted, had caused some damage, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Analysts at ANZ Research said hopes for negotiations have done little to prompt oil sales, with traders paying closer attention to events playing out in the region itself, according to The Wall Street Journal. Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey have agreed to keep talking about security and peace in the region, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The Houthis had claimed responsibility for Saturday strikes on Riyadh's principal airport and on Saudi oil installations. Brent gained 6% last week, while WTI rose 2.3%. On Monday, WTI futures fell 2.19% to $101 a barrel and Brent futures fell 1.89% to $114.51.

Saudi Arabia shut its East-West Pipeline after drone attacks from Iraq in September. The pipeline can move up to 7 million barrels a day and had served as an export route that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz.

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