2024-04-18 22:36:46
The attack of Iran a Israel injected greater stress into the oil markets, They are already in turmoil due to regional tensions, but analysts stress that it is unclear whether a lasting price increase is imminent.
Saturday’s nighttime bombing with drones and missiles was the first direct attack by Iran contra Israeli territory.
Tehran says it was sparked by the April 1 airstrike on its consulate building in the Syrian capital, which was widely blamed on Israel.
The Iranian mission to the United Nations warned of “considerably more severe” action if Israel “makes another mistake,” raising the possibility of escalating violence in the coming days.
Oil prices had already risen in the run-up to the Iranian attack, and crude North Sea Brent reference closed on Friday at $90.45 per barrel.
Prices are expected to rise further when markets reopen this Monday, perhaps as high as 95 Dollars per barrel, although it is too early to say whether they will remain high, said the Kuwaiti oil expert, Kamel al-Harami.
“The outlook is not clear about the future. We do not know if and how Israel will respond, and if Iran will also resort to stopping the oil supply in response,” he said.
The Islamic republic was the seventh crude oil producer in the world in 2022, and is considered the third with the largest proven oil reserves behind Venezuela and Saudi Arabia, according to the United States Energy Information Administration.
Iran also has a variety of ways to wreak havoc on markets, including disrupting shipping traffic across the Strait of Hormuz and pressure countries like Iraq to cut off supplies, Harami said.
“There are several scenarios… The fear is that Iran will stop exporting oil or attack oil facilities,” he said. Ban.
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2024-04-18 22:36:46