AFP examines the volatile movements, including when crude surged to record highs close to $150 per barrel in 2008, before turning negative 12 years later during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The war has blocked the world's most important oil ​artery the Strait of Hormuz which is responsible for 20% of ⁠global oil and LNG supply

The outlook poses a global economic threat and a political vulnerability for US President Donald Trump leading into the midterm elections, with voters sensitive to energy bills and unfavorable to foreign entanglements.

Goldman Sachs said oil prices are likely to exceed $100 per barrel next week if no signs of a solution emerge ​to the severe disruption in flows through the Strait ‌of Hormuz, warning that upside risks to its base‑case forecast are rapidly growing further.

Gold rose on Friday after softer US payrolls data kept hopes of a Federal ‌Reserve rate cut alive, but remained on track for its first weekly decline in five weeks as a stronger dollar kept gains in check.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Friday his government was considering lifting sanctions on more Russian oil, a day after it temporarily authorized India to buy from Moscow as global oil prices surged.

The US energy secretary said Friday the US Navy was preparing to escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz “as soon as it’s reasonable to do it,” as traffic through the key trade route remains strangled due to the US-Israel war on Iran.

India said Saturday it was pushing ahead with imports of Russian oil, after a temporary US waiver to import crude from Moscow due war in the Mideast -- but adding it did not need Washington’s permission.

US crude futures climbed 12 percent on Friday due to disruptions to global oil supplies because of the expanding ‌US-Israeli war with Iran.

International Energy Agency (IEA) chief Fatih Birol sought Friday to tamp down fears of a global oil crisis as conflict rages in the Middle East, saying there was “plenty of oil in the market.”

A group of US states said Thursday that they had filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s new tariffs on imports, imposed after the Supreme Court struck down his global duties last month.

Sean Robinson, a 54-year-old schoolteacher in the US capital Washington, did not realize how high gas prices had gotten until he arrived at the pump on Friday.

The war with Iran could leave consumers and businesses worldwide facing weeks or months of higher fuel prices even if the week-old conflict ends quickly, as suppliers grapple with damaged facilities, disrupted logistics, and elevated risks to shipping.

Washington temporarily eased economic sanctions against Russia on Thursday to allow Russian oil stranded at sea to be sold to India

The declaration came just before government ‌lawyers met with a federal trade judge to try to hammer out a broad settlement process

Brent North Sea crude, surged to $92.69 per barrel, up 8.5 percent for the day

The U.S. Navy could begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz ⁠if necessary, Trump said on Tuesday

The price hike comes at a politically sensitive time for President Donald Trump as midterm elections approach, hitting voters hard.

Driven by a tightening of US sanctions in the lead up to the ouster of leader Nicolas Maduro.

Gold prices edged higher on Thursday as ‌the widening Middle East conflict drove investors towards the safe-haven asset, while a rebound in the dollar limited gains.