Oil Prices Surge Following Hamas Attack on Israel

Oil prices increased sharply on Monday as a result of Hamas's unexpected terror attack against Israel.

The benchmark price of Brent crude, which is used around the world, increased by about 4% to close to $88 per barrel. The price of gasoline in the US is most closely correlated with Brent prices.

The price for the United States benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, increased by just over 4% to almost $86 per barrel.

In response to Hamas's significant attack on the Jewish state, Israel declared a “total siege” of the Gaza Strip. As of Monday morning, there have been an additional 800 fatalities and more than 2,500 injuries.

Oil merchants are making predictions about what the war would do for the world's oil supplies. According to a Monday Wall Street Journal article, Iran participated in the attack's planning. Oil traders believe this could result in increased enforcement on exports of Iranian oil.

The process that has seen an increasing normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel could be jeopardized by an uptick in violence in the area. According to some analysts, the terrorist act by Hamas was intended to scuttle any potential agreements between the two nations.

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