Paris (France) (AFP) – Here are the latest economic events in the Middle East war on Thursday:
– **’Extensive’ Qatar damage** – Qatar reported “extensive” damage on Thursday to the site of the world’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility following Iranian strikes, sparking fears for global energy supplies. Qatar is one of the world’s top liquefied natural gas producers, alongside the United States, Australia, and Russia, and its Ras Laffan facility is the world’s largest LNG hub. Qatari civil defence teams were reported to have contained fires touched off by the Iranian attack.
– **Kuwaiti refineries on fire** – A fire erupted at a second refinery owned by Kuwait’s national oil company after a drone attack, the information ministry said. “One of the operational units of the Mina Abdullah refinery, belonging to the Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC), was targeted by a drone attack, triggering a fire at the site,” the ministry said on X. The company’s other oil refinery, Mina Al-Ahmadi, was also struck by a drone on Thursday, sparking a small blaze.
– **Drone crashes at Saudi refinery** – A drone crashed into the Saudi oil refinery Samref in the industrial zone of the Red Sea port of Yanbu, the defence ministry said, adding that a damage assessment was underway. Earlier Thursday, the ministry said on X that it had intercepted a ballistic missile targeting the port. The Samref refinery is owned by the Saudi state energy giant Aramco and the Mobil Yanbu Refining Company, a subsidiary of US company ExxonMobil.
– **European gas prices jump 35%** – European gas prices soared as much as 35 percent on Thursday as fresh strikes hit energy infrastructure in the Middle East, including Qatar’s main gas facility. The Dutch TTF natural gas contract, considered the European benchmark, jumped to 74 euros, before paring gains.
– **Oil jumps** – Oil prices surged after strikes against energy infrastructure in Iran and Qatar. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was up 1.4 percent at $96.77 in European trade on Thursday, while Brent crude oil soared more than six percent to over $114 a barrel on fresh worries about energy supplies.
– **Pacific fuel shortages** – Leaders of Samoa and Tonga have appealed for help over fears of possible fuel shortages and escalating costs caused by the war. Samoan Prime Minister La’aulialemalietoa Leuatea Schmidt said Wednesday he had asked New Zealand leader Christopher Luxon if it was possible to divert fuel to his country in case of crisis. Tongan Prime Minister Lord Fakafanua, meanwhile, said New Zealand and Australia were “sharing intelligence” to help his country best prepare for shortages.
– **Italy reduces fuel prices** – Italy adopted late Wednesday measures to reduce fuel prices in response to spiking prices due to the war. “We are reducing the price of fuel by around 0.25 euros (28 US cents) per litre for everyone,” along with a tax credit for truckers, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni wrote on social media. France does not plan to cut fuel taxes, the government’s spokeswoman said Thursday.
– **Trump threatens Iran gas field** – US President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran’s key South Pars gas field if there were further attacks against Qatar’s main gas plant. Trump confirmed on his Truth Social platform that Israel had struck the South Pars field but said the US “knew nothing” of the attack, which spurred Iran to strike Qatar’s Ras Laffan facility. The South Pars/North Dome mega-field is the largest known gas reserve in the world and is shared by Iran and Qatar. Around 70 percent of Iran’s domestic natural gas comes from its portion of the field, which it calls South Pars.
© 2024 AFP
