Brent crude rose 3.8% to $104 a barrel on Thursday amid Middle East tensions and a hurricane threat to US oil production. The Atlantic reported that the White House asked the Pentagon to prepare options for strikes against Iran before the US midterm elections. Unnamed administration officials said the size, targets and whether the strikes would proceed remained under debate, according to The Atlantic. Shell and Chevron said they were shutting down production as Hurricane Isaias approached the Gulf of Mexico. Global bond and stock markets fell as rising energy prices reinforced expectations that central banks would raise interest rates to control inflation.