Oil prices soar. Cartoon of 09/03/2026 in CTXT
On 9 March, oil prices soared by more than 25% in a single day, reaching their highest levels since mid-2022. The price of North Sea crude oil, the benchmark in Europe, reached more than 118 dollars.
And as always, there are a lot of factors at play, almost all of them derived from the "war" move, such as the reduction of production, the speculative component, the uncertainty about the possible duration of the war, the deferred contracts (those agreements closed before the hikes) and the readjustment of what it will cost to transport it through the alternative routes to the Strait of Hormuz.
West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 15% to $104.61 a barrel at the open of the markets after a record 36% rise accumulated over the previous week following the start of US and Israeli bombing raids on Iran.
Brent crude was also trading above 102 dollars as the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq announced reductions in their oil production and the Strait of Hormuz, which although not officially closed, is not only no longer a crossing point for oil extracted in the Persian Gulf countries, but is now one of the hottest points of attack and a strategic target for both sides.
And the oil continues to burn, if not one way, then another. Plumes of smoke from the bombing of oil depots and refineries billowed across Tehran on Monday in the form of black rain, satellite images show, as the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned that attacks on oil facilities could pose serious health risks to the population.
And that's when I stopped following the evolution of prices. It is normal for an ordinary earthling to only find out when he goes to the petrol station to fill up with broth and sees that he has to leave his wallet at the pump to fill up with half as much fuel as yesterday, and then to see how the price of the rest of the products in common use is rising.
Trump (that eternal loudmouth who lies more than he talks) predicted on Sunday that oil prices will fall when "the destruction of the Iranian nuclear threat" is over and that "in the short term they will fall rapidly" and that it is"a very low price to pay for the security and peace of the United States and the world". In other words, let no one complain because he still considers it cheap. It's that, or death. Your choice. Well, no, you choose the cheeto. For Trump there are no possible scenarios other than his extremes and they are always set by him without anyone's support and/or approval.
And to convince you and any other learned person who stands in front of him, he concluded that"only fools would think differently". That's a strong argument. You don't want to be a fool, do you?
There is no indication that the war will end soon, quite the contrary. But Trump, in his unhealthy self-conceit, believes he can stop wars and conquer continents just by wishing hard and verbalising it.
