Khaberni - Oil prices are heading this Friday to achieve the biggest weekly gains since the severe fluctuations that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2020, with the halt of shipping and energy export through the vital Strait of Hormuz due to the conflict in the Middle East.
Brent crude futures jumped 24% this week, logging the biggest surge since May 2020, when an agreement by OPEC+ countries to cut production led to a rise in prices from their lowest levels during the pandemic. West Texas Intermediate crude rose by nearly 30%, marking the highest increase since April 2020.
By 13:53 Greenwich Mean Time, Brent crude had gained $4.59, or 5.4%, to $90 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate futures increased by $6.45, or 8%, to $87.46.
The Qatari Energy Minister told the Financial Times in an interview published Friday that he expects all Gulf energy-producing countries to stop exporting within weeks, a move he said could push oil prices to $150 per barrel.
Oil prices began to rise after the US-Israeli attack on Iran on Saturday, prompting Tehran to prevent oil tankers from crossing the Strait of Hormuz.
Approximately 20% of the global daily oil demand passes through this important waterway. With the strait effectively closed for seven days, this means that about 140 million barrels of oil, equivalent to about 1.4 days of global demand, were unable to reach the market.
