Oil prices settled at their highest levels since August on Friday, as mounting geopolitical tension between the US and Iran injected a fresh risk premium into the market and triggered late-session short covering.
Oil posted its biggest gain since October, rising more than 4% on Wednesday as escalating tensions between the US and Iran and stalled diplomacy over the Ukraine conflict prompted traders to price in heightened supply risks.
Container freight markets continued their post-holiday descent this week, with the Freightos Baltic Global benchmark now sitting 44% lower year-on-year—a stark reflection of a market grappling with rapid fleet growth and normalizing demand.