European natural gas prices rose on Thursday as a fresh exchange of strikes between U.S. forces and Iranian elements damped hopes for an imminent agreement that would restore normal tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
The Dutch front-month contract at the TTF hub was trading 3.9% higher at 48.200 euros per megawatt hour by 08:45 ET (12:45 GMT), based on ICE data. British natural gas futures also climbed, up 4.0% at 117.50 pence per therm.
Earlier in the day, the U.S. military struck targets near the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas. Media reports said Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responded by saying it had struck a U.S. military base in Kuwait, while Kuwaiti authorities reported they were defending against drone and missile attacks.
Reuters reported that the U.S. military shot down four Iranian attack drones and struck a ground control station in Bandar Abbas. Those reported actions represent a renewed kinetic exchange between the two sides, at a time when Tehran had warned of reprisals after U.S. strikes earlier in the week.
The U.S. military described its actions as in "self defense," and maintained that a ceasefire with Iran remained in place. Nonetheless, the sequence of strikes on Thursday raised the prospect of a resumption in open hostilities between Washington and Tehran.
The incidents occurred shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump dismissed a report that Iran and Oman would handle shipping through the Strait of Hormuz under a deal to end the war. The president said Iran wanted a deal but that he was not satisfied with the terms.
Amid those diplomatic efforts to end hostilities, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz was reported to have nearly halted, removing a portion of global oil and gas supplies from the market and applying upward pressure on energy prices.
Context note: This report reflects market moves and reported military actions as described by media and military statements on the day in question.