Israel took a break in its revenge against Iran for the missile attack. Oil prices are stuck in anticipation. Meanwhile, Gulf countries are pressuring the United States to contain Israel. In Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar fear retaliation from Iran and its allies over the venture.
Oil
On Friday, global oil prices returned to the levels of a week ago. The benchmark North Sea Brent rose during the week to $80, but still returned to $78.9 per barrel.
“We are still very headline-driven,” a partner at Again Capital LLC told Reuters. John Kilduff. “This morning we learned of a possible ceasefire. “Then we received reports that targets were still being selected and energy sites were under review.”
Ten days ago, Iran’s missile attack on Israel sent global oil prices to almost $80. Emotions have since calmed, but the threat itself has not gone away. This is well illustrated by the fact that the Gulf countries are pressuring the United States to stop Israeli attacks on Iranian oil facilities. The monarchies are concerned that their own oil facilities could be attacked by Tehran’s allies in neighboring countries if the conflict escalates.
Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar have refused to provide airspace to Israel for any attack on Iran, Reuters reported, citing sources.
“The Gulf measures follow diplomatic pressure from Shiite Iran to persuade its Sunni Gulf neighbors to use their influence with Washington amid growing fears that Israel could attack Iran’s oil facilities.” – writes the agency.
Iran has warned Saudi Arabia that it cannot guarantee the security of the kingdom’s oil facilities if Israel receives help to carry out an attack, Reuters sources said.
According to them, Israel’s revenge could have global consequences, especially for the main importer of Iranian oil, China, as well as for Kamala Harris, if prices rise to $120 per barrel before the US presidential election.
Gas
The gas market also fears an escalation in the Middle East, but this week it began to retreat. Fuel supplies from TTF’s main European hub for next month fell from $470 per thousand cubic meters to $458.
On the one hand, stocks in EU warehouses are high. The UGS facilities are 95% full. On the other hand, Russian gas exports remain stable and supplies from Norway have recovered after a month-long repair campaign. The operator Gassco reported today that exports had once again exceeded 320 million cubic meters per day.
In the coal market everything was more stable. During the week, the price of coal supplies from the Antwerp-Rotterdam-Amsterdam (ARA) hub for next month fell from $121.5 to $120 per ton.
