Iran tells the world: "Get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel"
"Get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel, because the oil price depends on regional security, which you have destabilised."
Iran has warned that global oil prices could surge to $200 a barrel as its forces fired on merchant ships in the Gulf on Wednesday, escalating the economic stakes of the war. Several vessels were struck near the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply normally passes.
Officials in Iran said the disruption could trigger the worst shock to global energy markets since the oil crises of the 1970s. The International Energy Agency proposed releasing 400 million barrels from strategic reserves in an attempt to stabilise prices, while investors remain cautious amid uncertainty over how long the conflict will last.
The escalation comes as fighting intensifies between Iran, Israel and the United States. Attacks on ships in the Gulf have now hit more than a dozen vessels since the conflict began, raising fears that a prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz could disrupt global trade and drive energy prices sharply higher.
As a spokesperson for Iran's military command states:
Get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel, because the oil price depends on regional security, which you have destabilised.
