"Could Oil Hit $200? Analysts Sound Alarm as Geopolitical Tensions Rise"

• "$200 Oil on the Horizon? Experts Weigh In on Market Volatility"

• "The $200 Barrel Threat: What's Driving Oil's Wild Ride?"

• Could the price of oil reach $200 per barrel? Analysts no longer consider it implausible.

 

Market observers predict that if the Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed, prices will likely increase significantly.

 

Analysts cautioned that conflict might push oil prices above $100 per barrel shortly after the US and Israel launched their initial attack on Iran on February 28.

 

Less than three weeks into the battle, market observers are now seriously speculating that prices could rise beyond $150 or even $200.

 

The worldwide standard, Brent crude, reached around $120 on March 9 and hasn't been below $100 since March 13. Crude prices increased to more than $108 a barrel on Wednesday after an Israeli strike on Iran's South Pars gas field on March 18 sparked Iranian attacks on gas and oil facilities in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

 

The worldwide standard, Brent crude, reached around $120 on March 9 and hasn't been below $100 since March 13. Crude prices increased to almost $108 per barrel on Wednesday after an Israeli strike on Iran's South Pars gas field on March 18 sparked Iranian attacks on oil and gas installations in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

 

Most analysts concur that if the Strait of Hormuz, which serves as a route for around one-fifth of the world's oil supplies during peacetime, stays essentially, closed in the upcoming weeks, prices might rise significantly.

 

The amount is the only significant topic of debate.

 

"Even if not for Brent and West Texas Intermediate, $200 is already within sight because benchmark Middle Eastern crudes like Oman and Dubai have already surpassed the $150 threshold."

 

 Al Jazeera was informed by Vandana Hari, the founder of oil market monitoring firm Vanda Insights.

 

"The length of time the Strait of Hormuz is closed determines how much more crude climbs from here," Hari stated.

 

Traffic almost stopped after Iran proclaimed the strait blocked early in the conflict and vowed to attack any ships trying to pass.

 

While nations are frantically negotiating agreements with Iran for safe passage, US President Donald Trump has failed to get international support for a naval convoy to reopen the strait. In recent days, very few ships have been permitted to pass, primarily those flying the flags of China, Pakistan, India, and Turkey.