Oil Breaks $100 as Tanker War Escalates, Diesel Hits All-Time Highs, and Central Banks Scramble to Contain the Shock

Brent crude settled at $101.45 per barrel on Wednesday — its first close above the psychologically significant $100 mark since July 23 — after Iran claimed to have attacked 10 ships near the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for U.S. strikes that sank five Iranian tankers. The escalation shattered a month of relative calm in the six-month-old war, sending WTI up 3.9% to $96.65 and triggering a third straight day of U.S. equity declines: the Dow fell 0.7% to...