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Brent Crude Oil, the primary global benchmark for crude oil pricing, spiked to more than $119 per barrel on Thursday (March 19) after Iran attacked energy facilities in the Middle East in retaliation to Israel's strike on its South Pars gas field, the New York Post reports.
Brent's futures LCOc1 were reported to have increased by more than $10 to a high of $119.13, nearly matching a three-and-a-half-year peak reached on March 9, before settling at $114.77 a barrel, up $7.39 or 6.9%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 was reportedly up to a high of $100.02 and a nearly $4 gain before settling at $0.27, or 0.3% at $96.59 a barrel, having been trading at its widest discount to Brent in 11 years.
The average price for regular gas is reportedly $3.884, an increase from the $3.842 reported the previous day; $3.598 reported the previous week; $2.020 reported the previous week; and $3.102 reported the previous year, according to the American Automobile Association. Israel attacked the South Pars gas field, the Iranian sector of the world's largest natural gas deposit, which it shares with U.S. and Qatar on the other side of the Gulf, though President Donald Trump claimed the U.S. and Qatar had no involvement in the incident on Wednesday (March 18).
Trump added that Israel wouldn't attack Iranian facilities in South Parks unless Iran attacked Qatar, with QatarEnergy later claiming that Iranian missile attacks on Ras Laffan, one of its largest LNG plants, caused "extensive damage." Vice President JD Vance and Energy Secretary Chris Wright will reportedly meet with top oil company executives in Washington this week as the price of gas continues to surge amid the ongoing 'Operation Epic Fury' in Iran, sources with knowledge of the situation confirmed to POLITICO.
The American Petroleum Institution, which serves as the United States' largest oil and gas lobbying association, confirmed Vance and Wright would address its board, which includes executives representing the world's largest oil companies. Oil prices have surged past $100 per barrel multiple times since the launch of 'Operation Epic Fury' as Iran has retaliated by stopping shipping flow through the Strait of Hormuz, which serves as a vital waterway for trade along the Persian Gulf.
The U.S. Department of Energy warned that gas prices aren't expected to drop back down to levels prior to the war in Iran until at least mid-2027 via the Financial Times.
“We’ve got a lot of costs moving their way through the system,” said Tom Kloza, an independent oil analyst. “We’re looking at some really scary inflation ratings — pervasive inflation throughout the country."