Middle East Crude-Benchmarks edge up after renewed clashes between US and Iran

SINGAPORE, May 8 (Reuters) - Middle East crude benchmark premiums of Oman, Murban and Dubai edged up as renewed clashes near the Strait of Hormuz raised new questions about the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran and supply outlook from the Middle East.

U.S. and Iranian forces clashed in the Gulf and the United Arab Emirates came under renewed attack, but U.S. President Donald Trump said a ceasefire was still holding despite the flare-up, which dented hopes for a swift diplomatic resolution to the crisis.

For this week, trading activity remained thin amid great market uncertainty, premiums were largely unmoved.

SINGAPORE CASH DEALS

Cash Dubai's premium to swaps rose 20 cents to $7.18 a barrel.

PRICES ($/BBL)

NEWS

China will raise the price caps for gasoline and diesel, it said on Friday, a month after it curbed price rises, as it seeks to manage the inflationary impact of the Iran war and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

A series of well-timed market bets on falling oil prices totalling as much as $7 billion during March and April spread across multiple exchanges and types of fuel and derivatives just before major Iranian policy announcements by U.S. President Donald Trump, according to traders, market experts and Reuters analysis of exchange data.

Southeast Asian leaders at a summit on Friday stressed an urgent need to coordinate their response to the impacts of the Middle East crisis, as they aim to ease pressure from an energy shock that has rattled their oil import-reliant economies.

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