Brent Tops $111 as Analysts Raise Forecasts on Hormuz Stalemate

Oil prices extended gains in Asian trade on Tuesday, with Brent Crude topping $111 per barrel, as the Strait of Hormuz remains inaccessible for more than eight weeks and the U.S.-Iran talks are nowhere near resumption. In the early morning in Europe, the Brent Crude futures were rising by 2.61% to $111.10 per barrel. The U.S. benchmark, WTI Crude, was creeping toward the $100 a barrel mark and traded 3% higher at $99.26. The market appears to have started to price in the longer-than-expected disruption at the Strait of Hormuz, where 20% of daily…