Oil and gas prices plummet after the two-week truce granted to Iran by American President Donald Trump. A lifesaver in which you no longer bet, which arrived like a dawn after a dark night. And if someone had sold, even short, some oil or gas futures yesterday, repurchasing the same number of contracts today at significantly lower prices, they would have accumulated a nice nest egg and double-digit earnings in the space of a few hours.
Oil falls below 100 dollars a barrel
Oil prices collapsed below 100 dollars after the announcement of the ceasefire and the two-week truce granted by Trump to Tehran. Brent lost more than 14% this morning, settling at 93.9 dollars a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate collapsed by around 15% to 96.18 dollars a barrel, after reaching a low last night of 93 dollars (-18%). North American crude could record its worst daily performance since April 2020 if it sustains a decline of more than 14.5% until the close.
Gas prices are also collapsing
Gas also recorded similar movements, collapsing on the main international markets. In particular, the price of the TTF gas future on the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, for delivery in May, fell to 44 euro/MWh, down by more than 17%. However, these are levels that are far from the pre-conflict situation, when prices were in the 32 euro/MWh area.
Record prices on the physical
On the physical market, crude oil prices have reached new historical records close to 150 dollars a barrel. European and Asian refineries have paid exorbitant rates for some grades of oil, far exceeding the prices of paper futures, confirming that the supply crisis caused by the war in the Middle East, which has imposed an interruption of around 12 million barrels per day through the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, is having heavy impacts on the energy market, which are affecting refined products and the fuel network.
More complaints about fuel speculation
Despite the sharp collapse in oil prices, fuel prices continue to rise to the point that the average price of diesel is rapidly moving towards 2.2 euros per liter throughout Italy. The complaint comes from Codacons, based on regional data provided by Mimit. Today diesel fuel on the motorway reached an average of 2.191 euros per litre, while yesterday it was sold at 2.158 euros/litre; petrol rises to 1.825 euros/litre. On the ordinary network the price of diesel has already exceeded the psychological threshold of 2.2 euros per liter in Bolzano, where a liter of diesel costs 2.205 euros, and the highest prices are recorded today in Calabria with an average of 2.198 euros per litre, Lombardy with 2.195 euros, Valle d’Aosta with 2.194 euros, Sicily with 2.190 euros.
