CHICAGO: Oil prices eclipsed USD 100 per barrel for the first time in more than three-and-a-half years on Sunday as the Iran war hinders production and shipping in the Middle East.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude, the international standard, was at USD 107.97 after trading resumed on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, up 16.5 per cent from its Friday closing price of USD 92.69.

West Texas Intermediate, the light, sweet crude oil produced in the United States, was selling for about USD 106.22 a barrel. That is 16.9 per cent higher than it closed Friday at USD 90.90.