Crude Oil Skyrockets Above $80 A Barrel

(RTTNews) - Crude oil prices have skyrocketed during trading on Thursday, resuming the surge seen earlier in the week in reaction to the conflict in the Middle East.

Crude for April delivery has spiked $6.51 or 8.7 percent to $81.17 a barrel and has soared by $14.15 or 21.1 percent so far this week.

The spike in crude oil prices comes amid ongoing supply disruption worries due to the expanding conflict in the Middle East.

Iran has claimed it struck a U.S. oil tanker in the northern Persian Gulf, raising fears of a wider conflict after the Islamic republic threatened to halt shipping through the vital Strait of Hormuz.

According to Iran's Mehr news agency, the military targeted the tanker with a missile and set it on fire.

The claim came shortly after the United States submarine sank an Iranian warship off the southern coast of Sri Lanka.

In a Pentagon briefing, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the strike on the warship was the first such attack on an enemy since World War II.

Hegseth also signaled a possible longer time frame for the conflict than has previously been floated by the Trump administration, saying the war could last up to eight weeks but might be over sooner.