There is unrest in the Middle East. After the recent escalation between Iran and Israel, there are fears that the latter's next move will be an attack on the other country's oil facilities. This prospect is not without its effect on the oil price.
Following Iran's retaliation on Israel on Monday night (September 30) for attacks on the Iranian-backed terrorist group Hezbollah in Lebanon, oil prices have been on the rise. At the time of writing (Wednesday afternoon, October 2), Brent crude oil is trading at €75,82 per barrel, 5,6% higher than Monday (€71,77).
Tensions in the Middle East have increased dramatically. In April, there was already talk of war threats between Israel and Iran. At that time, however, it seemed that both countries wanted to send a signal, but did not really want to escalate the situation. Iran retaliated against an attack on an Iranian consulate in Syria with a missile attack that was largely stopped because it had been widely announced, after which Israel launched a small counterattack. Relative calm returned after that.
Now tensions have risen. Two weeks ago, pagers and walkie-talkies belonging to Hezbollah members exploded in Lebanon, which was attributed to Israel. Since then, shelling has been carried out back and forth, hundreds of people were killed in airstrikes on Lebanon, and on Friday, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an airstrike. Iran wants to avenge that death and on Monday evening the country fired around 180 rockets at Israel. Yesterday, Israel sent ground troops to southern Lebanon.
Refineries targeted
Israel wants to make Iran pay for its airstrikes. There are fears that Israel will carry out airstrikes on Iran, targeting oil refineries and nuclear facilities. According to the Energy Institute's Statistical Review of World Energy 2024, Iran produced 4,66 million barrels of oil per day, accounting for 4,8% of global oil production.
Diesel price
The price of diesel has risen again. This week from €119,54 to €120,69 per 100 litres.