YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

The chief benchmark for crude oil produced in the United States surpassed $100 per barrel Thursday as Iran-backed Houthi rebels seized control of a key port in the Red Sea, intensifying Tehran’s effort to loosen Washington’s grip on the region’s key shipping lanes. West Texas Intermediate closed at just below $104 per barrel, while Europe’s Brent crude soared more than 6% to about $108. Murban crude out of the United Arab Emirates hiked 5% to nearly $123. The surge came as the Iran War heats up, with The Wall Street Journal breaking news that Tehran is once again manufacturing ballistic missiles to make good on its promise to retake at least partial control of another key waterway, the Strait of Hormuz. On Thursday morning, the Houthis ousted Yemeni government forces from the port city of Mokha, giving the militant army a better position from which to attack ships passing through the Red Sea. By evening, satellite images began circulating of smoke billowing from the East-West Pipeline that spans Saudi Arabia, which serves as the kingdom’s primary means of routing oil around the conflict zone at the Strait of Hormuz. If U.S. crude prices remain lower than the other global benchmarks,...

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

YouTube video by Hoa kỳ News 9

California is once again confronting a rapidly escalating wildfire season fuelled by extreme heat, drying vegetation, drought and strong winds. As of 24 July, the state has recorded more than 3,800 wildfires so far this year, burning approximately 79,000 hectares. The largest active blaze, in Lassen County, had grown to more than 28,000 hectares. The immediate images are familiar to Australians: towering smoke columns and orange skies. But these wildfires are not simply the result of hot summer weather. They are driven by a chain of interacting climatic, environmental and human factors. In Australia, a powerful El Niño and the possible emergence of a positive Indian Ocean Dipole would bring drier, warmer weather. This could create similarly dangerous conditions in southern and eastern Australia this spring and summer. A hot, dry landscape primed to burn In southern California, persistent drought, abundant grass growth and low coastal moisture have accelerated the drying of vegetation. In the north of the state, early–season dryness and the development of “flash drought” conditions have pushed some landscapes towards critical fire danger. As temperatures rise, warm air can draw more moisture from plants and soils. This means that even if it rains, vegetation cannot replace the...