The Middle East crisis has led to a spike in oil with British consumers feeling the impact.
From relatively stable costs at the start of the year, with prices for both fuels sitting in the 130p to 140p range, the shock was hard and fast, with prices heading towards 160p for petrol and north of 190p for diesel, adding a substantial cost to filling a tank.
A tentative ceasefire led to oil prices dropping back below $100 dollars per barrel, although they remained well above where they were before the latest conflict began. But global oil prices rose overnight after Donald Trump said the US has intercepted and seized an Iran-flagged cargo ship.
Brent crude futures were up by 4.74% at $94.66 (£70.11) a barrel as of 5:30am, which was a drop from the 7% high seen earlier in the night. “Oil markets continue to gyrate in response to oscillating social media posts by the US and Iran, rather than the realities on the ground which remain challenging for oil flows to resume in a rapid fashion”, analyst Saul Kavonic from financial services firm MST Marquee told the BBC.
