← March 7, 2026 briefingEconomy

Oil surges to 2023 highs as Iran war rattles markets

The US-Israeli war on Iran has sent oil to its highest price since 2023, with Gulf energy infrastructure taking direct hits for the first time in recent memory — ships in the Gulf are even falsifying transponder signals to declare themselves Chinese and dodge attack. The US is now weighing lifting more sanctions on Russian oil to ease the crunch, a day after it authorised India to buy Russian supplies. Wall Street closed out its worst week since October as the Iran crisis compounded an already weak US jobs report.

Sources
Ships in Gulf declare themselves Chinese to dodge attack

Ships in Gulf declare themselves Chinese to dodge attack

Financial Times · Mar 6

US considers lifting more sanctions on Russian oil as Iran conflict sees global prices surge

US considers lifting more sanctions on Russian oil as Iran conflict sees global prices surge

The Guardian · Mar 7

Mar 6

Oil surges to its highest price since 2023, and stocks drop after U.S. jobs report

NPR · 8:17 PM

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Mar 7

Anti-aircraft fire seen in eastern Lebanon amid Israeli incursion

Al Jazeera · 3:18 AM

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