- Oil up, stocks higher -

Oil prices rose as the Middle East crisis escalated with the entry of Yemen's Houthi rebels into the Iran war and as US President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran's main export terminal.

However European and US stocks rose as markets focused on Trump's comments on negotiations to end the fighting.

Brent was up more than two percent at near $108 a barrel and WTI also rose about two percent, pushing it past $100 a barrel to near $102.

- Israel rescuers dousing refinery fire -

Israel's fire and rescue service said its crews were working to extinguish a large blaze at the Haifa oil refinery in the country's north after it was hit by debris from the interception of a projectile Monday.

Television channels showed thick black smoke billowing into the sky from the site, while the fire service shared photos of a tank on fire, shortly after the Israeli military said it had detected new incoming missiles from Iran.

-Sri Lanka raises electricity prices 40% -

Sri Lanka announced on Monday a nearly 40 percent increase in electricity prices from Wednesday as it battles an energy shortage caused by the war in the Middle East.

Sri Lanka has raised fuel prices three times this month, increasing them by more than a third, and has announced a four-day working week in a bid to save energy.

- Norway cuts fuel taxes -

Norway will temporarily slash its taxes on petrol and diesel to counter rising prices as the Middle East war disrupts global energy supplies, the government said Monday.

As of April 1, the tax on petrol will be reduced by 4.41 kroner ($0.45) per litre and that on diesel by 2.85 kroner ($0.29) per litre, the government said in a statement.

- Seoul calms plastics rush -

South Korea's energy minister sought to ease fears over shortages of plastic rubbish bags after sales in Seoul jumped nearly fivefold due to energy supply concerns sparked by the Middle East war.

South Korea is a major importer of oil and related by-products used to make plastic, and household trash can only be disposed of in special bags sold in shops.

The minister said there are no supply issues for a year.

- G7 meeting -

G7 ministers and central bank officials gathered Monday to tackle the economic consequences of the war in the Middle East that has sent energy prices soaring and has triggered fears for the world economy.

- Australia halves fuel tax -

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the country would halve a tax on fuel to reduce costs for motorists experiencing soaring petrol prices.

Australia charges a sales tax of 52 cents ($0.35) on each litre of petrol sold at the pump, which will be halved for three months.

- Bangladesh orders energy saving -

Bangladesh has ordered civil servants to switch off lights and turn down air conditioning to save power as the Middle East war worsens an energy crunch.

The public administration ministry issued a string of orders on office attendance, as well as electricity and fuel saving measures, ministry official Sakhawat Hossain told AFP.

- Philippines secures Russian crude -

The Philippines' sole oil refinery has secured nearly 2.5 million barrels of Russian crude, according to a stock exchange filing.

Petron said it had agreed to purchase the oil after seeing at least four million barrels in shipments cancelled since the start of the Middle East war.

- Gulf energy targets -

An Iranian strike on a power station in Kuwait killed one worker and caused "significant material damage", according to the Gulf state's electricity ministry.

- Iranian grid 'stable' -

Iran has restored electricity in parts of the capital, Tehran, and nearby areas after strikes damaged power grids and briefly disrupted supply, deputy energy minister Mostafa Rajabi-Mashhadi said in an interview with state television.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to strike Iranian power stations if Tehran does not negotiate a peace deal, before repeatedly extending a deadline to do so.

- Hormuz crossings -

Fifteen vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, 12 of them on Saturday, making it one of the busiest days for crossings since March 1, according to Kpler.

On Monday, two further ships -- ultra-large container vessels owned by Chinese shipping giant Cosco -- appeared to have successfully crossed the strait after an aborted attempt last week, maritime tracker MarineTraffic said on X.

It interpreted their passage as "signalling a potential shift in conditions for commercial shipping".

- Indian rupee hits fresh record low -

India's rupee fell to a record low of more than 95 to the dollar on Monday, before recovering, despite recent efforts by the central bank to stem its fall.

Experts say the Middle East war has piled more pressure on the currency, as overseas investors offload Indian shares, and as concerns grow over India's rising energy import bill and the possibility of a wider current account deficit.

The world's most populous nation is one of the "most vulnerable economies within Asia to an energy price shock", analysts at Nomura wrote in a note on Monday.

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