After shooting to $102 per barrel a day earlier, Brent crude, the international standard, was down $3.02 at $97.67. Before the Iran war began in late February it was trading around $72 per barrel.
U.S. benchmark crude slipped $2.43 to $89.76 per barrel. Even with Friday’s decline, both standards are up more than 10% this week.
Attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea threatened another avenue that oil companies use to move their crude from the Middle East to customers worldwide, along with the Strait of Hormuz.
Underscoring the importance of the sea route for the economy, Trump threatened “major military punishment” against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are backed by Iran, if they keep attacking ships.
Gasoline prices tend to follow oil prices higher, and the average cost for a gallon of regular gas surpassed $4.10 overnight, according to AAA. That’s still lower than this spring as the conflict in Iran expanded, but it’s almost a dollar higher than last year at this time.
Higher gas prices generally exacerbate broader inflation and could force the Federal Reserve and other central banks to raise interest rates, which would slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and other investments.
More immediately, those prices have changed the way that Americans behave as consumers attempt to offset the more substantial cost of filling up the car.
The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains the most trusted source of fast, accurate, unbiased news in all formats and the essential provider of the technology and services vital to the news business. The Trucker Media Group is subscriber of The Associated Press has been granted the license to use this content on TheTrucker.com and The Trucker newspaper in accordance with its Content License Agreement with The Associated Press.
