International oil prices soar due to news of China suspending exports of petroleum products and sending additional troops to the Middle East.

(New York = Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Yeon-sook = International oil prices soared on the 1st (local time).

Following the news of China's suspension of oil product exports, and reports that the United States plans to dispatch up to 10,000 additional troops to the Middle East, concerns about energy supply disruptions have increased.

On this day, on the ICE Futures Exchange, Brent crude oil for December delivery ended trading at $102.31 per barrel, up 4.37% from the previous price.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil for November delivery closed at $92.87 per barrel, up 2.71% from the previous price.

Citing four sources, Reuters reported today that Chinese oil refineries have suspended exports of petroleum products to regions other than Hong Kong and Macau until further notice from authorities.

Oil prices showed a downward trend at the beginning of the market, but turned upward after news of China's export suspension broke.

Hamad Hussein, chief economist at Capital Economics, said, "China's restrictions on fuel exports will act as another factor of pressure on the global fuel market, which has extremely limited supply."

There were also reports that the U.S. Department of Defense plans to dispatch a third aircraft carrier group and Marine Corps ships to the Middle East and deploy an additional 90,000 to 10,000 troops.

The US daily Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing US government officials, reported that these troops are scheduled to arrive in the Middle East by the end of November.

At a time when the global supply of petroleum products is tight due to political instability in the Middle East and attacks on Russian oil refineries, there are concerns that China's suspension of exports and heightened tensions between the US and Iran could deepen the supply shortage.