The price of oil has risen above $100 a barrel for the first time since July as the escalating conflict in the Middle East threatens further disruption to global supplies.
Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil prices, rose 2.7% to about $100.6 after tensions increased in the Gulf amid the latest tit-for-tat exchange of fire between the US and Iran.
UK and mainland Europe gas prices also soared on Wednesday. The benchmark Dutch gas contract rose by almost 4% to €78.73 a megawatt hour, the highest since January 2023. Meanwhile, the British contract rose by 7.77p to 196.57p a therm, the highest since December 2022.
Reminder that oil is refined before it is made into products such as gasoline. If say a refinery gets blown up, that can make refined products like gasoline much more expensive due to less supply and simultaneously lower the price of crude oil because with less refining there is less demand for crude oil.
The price of crude oil going in to be refined is important because if that is crazy expensive then generally so will be products that are made from it but there are some other factors at play