Oil and gas prices rise due to trade strike between US and Iran. UK house prices fall – Business Live | business

Oil and gas prices rise due to US-Iran trade strike

Oil and gas prices surged this morning as Iran and the United States continued to launch attacks against each other, dampening hopes for a peace deal.

Earlier this morning, U.S. Central Command said it had struck Iran’s “radar and command and control sites for drones on Qeshm Island, Goruk, Iran,” over the weekend. “Iran’s aggressive actions” were followed by “self-defense.”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Monday it had targeted an air base used by the United States to launch attacks in southern Iran, but did not specify which base.

Our Middle East live blog has more details:

The strike brought Brent crude back to $94.29 per barrel, up 3.5% from Friday night’s closing price of $92 per barrel (a six-week low).

Gas prices are also rising. A month ago UK wholesale gas contracts were up almost 6% to 117.3pa compared with 78.5p before the Iran war began.

Donald Trump has insisted that “Iran really wants a deal,” but markets seem somewhat unconvinced that a major breakthrough is close.

Paul Donovan, Chief Economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, says:

Double quote Oil prices rose due to no clear progress on the Iran-US agreement. As with last week’s reports that negotiations were imminent, the reaction was muted. Investors have fallen into a jaded cynicism and are inclined to downplay comments from the US administration in the absence of a clear statement from Iran.

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Updated on 05.19 EDT

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Today’s surge in oil prices follows a month in which crude oil prices fell significantly.

Summarizing May’s market movements, Deutsche Bank told clients this morning:

Hopes for a double-quote US-Iran deal meant Brent crude fell -19.3%, its biggest monthly decline since March 2020 when pandemic lockdowns began.

Hoth’s hopes for an end to the conflict meant fears of stagflation were dramatically eased, which also benefited risk assets.

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Some UK motor fuel retailers appear to have taken advantage of the Middle East crisis to increase profit margins in April.

A new report from the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority today found that “in many cases” individual retailer margins increased slightly in April.

The CMA is also concerned that retailers are generally pursuing a “largely passive pricing policy” rather than actively competing to win customers by cutting costs.

The CMA says:

Quote: We are concerned that margins in April continue to be high and in some cases increasing.

This may reflect continued high retail prices, higher retail prices and increased price per liter (ppl) margins in April, but may also be due to weak price competition, with retailers continuing to use passive pricing strategies rather than retailers reacting quickly to wholesale price changes or seeking to gain market share by lowering retail prices.

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Updated on 07.32 EDT

A shipping company’s top executive has warned that any US-Iran peace deal must include clear rules to allow ships to resume normal operations through the Strait of Hormuz.

Shipping executives will meet today at the shipping exhibition in Athens, and Pankaj Khanna, president of Heidmar Maritime Holdings, said:

Quote “What we need is clearly a framework, a set of rules, exactly how we can get in and out. So even if there is a peace deal, we need to make that clear, and we don’t know that yet.”

“Obviously, sailors on board are missing out on births, deaths and marriages, as well as seeing their families.”

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Petrol and diesel prices in the UK fell slightly today, moving away from their peaks from the war with Iran.

This morning, the average price of a liter of gasoline fell 0.02p to 159.37p, and that of diesel fell 0.07pa liter to 183.75p.

RAC Report:

The average price of double quote diesel is now at 183.75p a liter, down almost 8p (7.79p) since peaking at 191.54p on April 15. Petrol peaked at 159.53p on May 28. It is now 26.5p higher than the 159.37p it was at the start of the Iran conflict.

The price of a tank of petrol for a 55-litre family car is now £87.65 – £14.60 more than it was on 28 February. Diesel costs £101.06 – £22.75 more than it did when the Iran war began.

ShareOfcom investigates Royal Mail’s failure to meet delivery targets

Ofcom has launched a traditional investigation into Royal Mail’s failure to meet delivery targets.

The communications regulator said Royal Mail’s service levels remained “unacceptable”. In the year to the end of March, 75.7% of first-class mail was delivered the next business day. This figure is well below the target of 93% at the time.

Only 90.2% of second-class mail was delivered within three business days, missing the goal of 98.5%.

Ian Strawhorne, Ofcom’s head of enforcement, said:

Quote “A reliable postal service is vital to many people across the country. We share the deep frustration of customers who have missed out on important letters due to Royal Mail’s failure to continually improve its service over the years.

“While the company is currently making progress with its improvement plan, we will continue to be accountable for its unacceptable performance to date.”

The £500 million improvement plan includes delivering second class mail every other week and discarding it on Saturdays.

ShareWise stock falls as Belgian prosecutors investigate fintech

Shares in Fintech Wise fell more than 10% today after reports that suspicious transactions worth more than 500 million euros were being investigated.

The Bureau of Investigative Journalism reported this morning that Wise is being investigated over concerns that the account was used by criminals to launder proceeds from fraud, corruption and drug trafficking.

BIJ reported that Belgian prosecutors began investigating Wise’s account last year after noticing it was included in hundreds of cross-border assistance requests in criminal proceedings in more than 30 countries across Europe.

Wise confirmed this morning that he was cooperating with Belgian authorities, saying:

QuoteFighting against financial crime is an industry-wide challenge that Wise takes very seriously as a financial institution with over 80 regulatory licenses worldwide. This allows Wise to serve more than 19 million active customers worldwide and process approximately 4.7 million transactions per day.

Just as we routinely work with regulators and law enforcement, we are currently cooperating with the Brussels Prosecutor’s Office to respond to their inquiries about our business. His office’s inquiry is still incomplete and no specific results have been shared with us to date. Therefore, our comments on any claim are speculative. We will continue to cooperate with the Brussels Prosecutor’s Office as specific findings emerge.

Shares in Wise are currently down 12.6% in London.

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Updated on 06.52 EDT

Aluminum hits 4-year high

Aluminum prices hit their highest in more than four years as risks to Middle East supplies increased following the US-Iran military strike deal.

The benchmark aluminum contract on the London Metal Exchange hit $3,707.50, equal to a four-year high reached in May.

ShareDrax Acquires Bluefield Solar

Elsewhere in the energy world, power plant operator Drax has agreed to acquire green energy investor Bluefield Solar Income Fund.

The all-cash deal values ​​Bluefield at around £550m and lifts the company’s share price by 16%, lifting it to the top of the FTSE 250.

Bluefield operates a portfolio of UK-based renewable energy infrastructure assets including solar farms, wind farms and small-scale wind turbines. Drax, which operates a biomass power generation scheme in Yorkshire, said the deal was an “attractive opportunity” to grow its UK renewable power business.

Dan Coatsworth, Market Director at AJ Bell, said:

Quote “Drax’s commitment to diversifying its business is remarkable. After losing the 2025 bid for storage company Harmony Energy to Foresight, Drax has now made an all-cash bid for renewable energy investment vehicle Bluefield Solar. The unanimous approval of Bluefield’s board gives confidence that the acquisition will be successful.

“This transaction will increase Drax’s revenue and cash flow visibility while expanding its renewable energy footprint. Drax’s existing interests include pumped hydro, gas and biomass assets, the latter of which is facing scrutiny over its sustainability credentials.

“FCA investigations continue to take place in the background around the sourcing of pellets for biomass facilities, but this acquisition suggests that this issue will not prevent Drax from pursuing its strategic objectives.

ShareUK factory input price inflation nears four-year high.

The Iran war has driven up costs for UK manufacturers (and for Eurozone manufacturers).

A recent poll of UK factory purchasing managers found there was “significant pressure” on input prices and supply chains during May.

Prices rose at the fastest pace in nearly four years, driven by higher prices for chemicals, electronics, energy, groceries, fuels, plastics, metals, packaging, paper and wood.

Bosses cited “wars in the Middle East, volatile commodity markets, geopolitical conflict, supply chain issues, material shortages, tariffs, rising labor costs and tax increases,” according to data firm S&P Global.

The recovery of the UK manufacturing sector is accelerating, with output growth hitting a three-month high, according to the report.

This pushed the UK manufacturing PMI to a four-year high of 53.9 in May, up slightly from 53.7 in April (a reading above 50 indicates growth).

ShareOil and gas prices rise due to trade strike between US and Iran.

Oil and gas prices surged this morning as Iran and the United States continued to launch attacks against each other, dampening hopes for a peace deal.

Earlier this morning, U.S. Central Command said it had struck Iran’s “radar and command and control sites for drones on Qeshm Island, Goruk, Iran,” over the weekend. “Iran’s aggressive actions” were followed by “self-defense.”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Monday it had targeted an air base used by the United States to launch attacks in southern Iran, but did not specify which base.

Our Middle East live blog has more details:

The strike brought Brent crude back to $94.29 per barrel, up 3.5% from Friday night’s closing price of $92 per barrel (a six-week low).

Gas prices are also rising. A month ago UK wholesale gas contracts were up almost 6% to 117.3pa compared with 78.5p before the Iran war began.

Donald Trump has insisted that “Iran really wants a deal,” but markets seem somewhat unconvinced that a major breakthrough is close.

Paul Donovan, Chief Economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, says:

Double quote Oil prices rose due to no clear progress on the Iran-US agreement. As with last week’s reports that negotiations were imminent, the reaction was muted. Investors have fallen into a jaded cynicism and are inclined to downplay comments from the US administration in the absence of a clear statement from Iran.

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Updated on 05.19 EDT

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