Oil prices surge after Israel’s attack on Iran

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Oil prices rose on Friday, as Israel’s air strike against supplies all over the region threatened and raised the origins of the haven.

Brent crude, the international standard, increased by approximately 6 percent to $ 73.45 in London, after increasing more than 12 percent. West Texas, the American standard, increased by 6.1 percent to $ 72.22.

Michael Alvaro, the chief investment official of Gallo Partners, a hedge fund that focuses on energy and industries, said the attack on Iranian nuclear installations represents a “seismic escalation” in the conflict.

He said: “We are staring at a barrel of a long struggle that is certainly that oil prices are certainly high.”

Israel targeted the Iranian nuclear program and military facilities and killed the best leaders. Iran said none of its oil facilities was injured in the attack.

Global stock markets and gold gold, one of the haven assets. The futures for the S&P 500 fell by 1.2 percent, and the price of gold increased by 1.2 percent to $ 3,423 an ounce.

There are multiple risks to the energy sector of a renewed conflict.

The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that separates Iran from the Gulf states, is a channel for about a third of the oil supplies transported in the market in the world. Iran has repeatedly threatened to close it in the event of an attack.

Some of the largest oil fields in the world, including in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, are accessible to missiles and drones in Iran. In 2019, it was widely believed that Iran was behind an attack on Saudi oil facilities, which briefly pushed the price of crude.

Qatar is one of the largest liquefied natural gas suppliers in the world, and its shipments must exceed hormonal to reach international markets at a time of narrow global supplies.

Hylema Koftt, a former US CIA analyst at RBC Capital Markets, wondered whether the last strike is a limited military participation, as happened in the fall, or if Iran is targeting regional energy supplies.

“The main question is whether Iran is seeking to internationalize the cost of work tonight by targeting the infrastructure of regional energy,” Croft said.

US president Donald Trump has previously pledged to maintain low oil prices to help tame inflation.

After Russia’s extensive invasion of Ukraine, which started in 2022, the Biden administration issued about 300 million barrels of crude from the American Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the largest emergency stock in the world, to help maintain prices under selection.

If the increase in oil prices are prolonged or supplies are broken from the Middle East, Trump can use SPR, but in the past, former President Joe Biden criticized his drying to the lowest level in 40 years. SPR contains about 400 million barrels, much lower than a 727 million barrel.

Traders will also search for any response from OPEC+ oil producers. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, one of the most powerful members of the group, condemned the Israeli attack on Friday.

The group, from which Iran is a member, raises production in recent months, but it may face additional pressure from the Trump administration to take advantage of its additional ability to maintain the markets well.