Oil Prices Surge Over 7% - Brent Crude Oil Hits $110 a Barrel

Daniel Hall 02/03/2022

Oil prices have drastically increased despite new measures aimed at calming global markets worried by the invasion of Ukraine.

Concerns about Russia's invasion of Ukraine have sparked concerns among investors that oil or gas supplies could be affected.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has investors on edge.

Western sanctions on Russia have caused turmoil in the global banking sector, with firms scrambling to ensure they're not doing business with any sanctioned individual or company.

Oil hits $110 a barrel despite emergency measures.

Both WTI and Brent are now up more than 40% year to date as demand rebounds while supply remains constrained. 

The United States and 30 other member countries of the International Energy Agency (IEA) agreed to release the oil in a bid to stabilize energy markets worldwide. But the emergency measures were not enough. 

Petrol price movements in the UK as well as other countries are mainly determined by the price of crude oil, which is the raw material for fuel, and the exchange rate between the dollar and the pound, because oil is traded in dollars.

Markets in the US, Europe and UK fell amid fears about the impact of the ongoing conflict.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow calls a “special operation,” was met with widespread condemnation and an array of sanctions by Western countries.

Sanctions can hurt both sides, not just the sanctioned. However, many organizational leaders are clear - decisions are being made, not simply about money, but on moral grounds too.

Russia is a major oil and gas producer and exporter, especially to Europe. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the on-going energy crisis, many European countries are relying on Russia to supply them with gas and electricity. 

So far the country’s energy complex has not been targeted by sanctions directly. However, there are ripple effects from the financial sanctions levied against Russia that have made some foreign buyers reluctant to buy energy products from Russia.

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