Commercial shipping was warned to be on the alert on Friday for drones after a suspected Israeli retaliatory strike against Iran.
Iranian state television reported that air defence systems fired in several provinces after reports of drones, but any attack appears to be limited in scale.
Three explosions were heard near an army base in the central city of Isfahan, domestic news agency Fars said.
UK Maritime Trade Operations said vessels in the Middle East Gulf and western Indian Ocean could see increased drone activity but “there are currently no indications commercial maritime vessels are the intended target”.
Oil jumped nearly $4 on news of the strike early on Friday but later fell back as an Iranian official told Reuters there was no plan for immediate retaliation.
Markets had been on edge since Iran’s unprecedented drone and missile strike on Israel last weekend. Hundreds were shot down with limited damage to Israel and Western diplomats had urged the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to escalate the situation.
The oil market has taken a measured view of the crisis and may still hold that stance despite the latest attacks, said Ole-Rikard Hammer, senior analyst for oil and tanker markets at Arctic Securities.
He said the possible strikes had a “deterrent look” that demonstrated Israel’s abilities to strike deep into Iran but avoided nuclear installations and civilian casualties.
“Hence one may argue that the ‘contained conflict’ scenario will continue and price impact will be moderate,” Hammer said in a note.
On Thursday, the US and UK announced a series of sanctions limiting travel and asset freezes among Iranian military officials and the naval group held responsible for seizing the 15,000-teu MSC Aries (built 2020) on 13 April in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have launched dozens of attacks against shipping in the region since mid-November, prompting operators to reroute vessels via the Cape of Good Hope.
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