09:12 AM EST, 11/04/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Oil was sharply higher early on Monday after OPEC+ again delayed plans to increase production while geopolitical risk heightens as Iran promises fresh attacks on Israel and the U.S. election looms.

West Texas Intermediate crude for December delivery was last seen up US$2.05 to US$71.54 per barrel, while January Brent crude, the global benchmark, was up US$1.98 to US$75.08.

OPEC+ on Sunday agreed to delay a plan to begin returning 2.2-million barrels per day of production cuts by a month to January, its second deferment from its original October target. The group intends to add 180,000 barrels per day monthly for a year, but has said any supply hike will depend on market conditions.

"With continued uncertainty around 2025's demand outlook, the pause decision is consistent with the leadership's June pledge to remain prudent about production decisions and to avoid sudden shocks ... Concerns that OPEC was poised to oversupply a fragile market have been weighing significantly on sentiment," Helima Croft, Head of Global Commodity Strategy and MENA Research at RBC Capital Markets noted.

Geopolitical risk also returned to the market on Friday following reports Iran intends further attacks on Israel using its proxy militia groups in Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East, reviving worries Israel's wars in Gaza and Lebanon will spread to the Persian Gulf, which produces nearly a third of the world's oil.

"This latest chapter in the millennia of Middle East saga is not done with, and after a whipping up by radicals in the Iranian media ... Iran seemed set to launch another attack on Israel, something that found concurrence from Israel and the US," PVM Oil Associates noted.

However Tuesday's U.S. presidential election may be clouding the timing of any Iranian attack.

"The Iranian Supreme Leader may opt to wait until after November 5th to see who is in the White House come January. Senior advisors to Trump have expressed strong support for striking Iranian nuclear facilities and bringing back maximum pressure sanctions. A Harris administration, on the other hand, would probably not look to ratchet up sanctions pressure and would focus on bringing the war to an end as quickly as possible. Hence, Tuesday's election outcome could potentially influence the scale of Iranian action going forward," RBC's Croft wrote.