Iran appears to be rushing to export oil as Israel’s military assault threatens a crucial sector of its economy.
Tehran’s oil shipments have spiked in the last week, ensuring continued revenue in case of disruption, while satellite images suggest Iran is also rapidly filling up its storage tanks, sending “as much as possible to the global market while it can,” Bloomberg reported.
But fears that a larger conflict involving the US could hamper shipments have caused oil prices to rise in recent days; a new Goldman Sachs estimate puts the geopolitical premium on Brent crude at about $10 per barrel. This conflict “knocks oil out of its complacency,” one analyst said, arguing “the market has been underplaying geopolitical risk.”
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