Oil prices surged four per cent today after US and UK forces launched strikes against Houthi rebels following their attacks on ships in the Red Sea, fuelling worries about a wider conflict in the crude-rich region.

Wall Street opened higher as earnings season got underway in earnest with a slew of banks reporting results and wholesale inflation unexpectedly dipping in December.

JPMorgan Chase’s profits dropped in the fourth quarter to $9.3 billion, but that was due to a one-off special levy of $2.9bn by US regulators after the failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.