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(UPI) Tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia pale in comparison to market fundamentals, leaving crude oil prices less exposed to crises in the Middle East, analysis from Wood Mackenzie finds. Pictured, Iranians celebrate in Tehran after the announcement of the historic nuclear deal with world powers. File photo by Saba Taherian/UPI LONDON, Jan. 6 (UPI) — The glut of oil on the global market is diminishing the prospects that tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia will cause a spike in oil prices, analysis finds.
Crude oil prices spiked Monday amid the diplomatic backlash that resulted when the Saudi Embassy in Tehran was stormed by activists frustrated by Riyadh’s execution of prominent Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr. Several of Saudi Arabia’s allies in the region have cut or downgraded ties with Iran in what may be one of the more severe geopolitical escalations between the two rivals in decades.
Oil prices since Monday, however, have moved lower, with Brent trading at its lowest level in more than a decade. An emailed forecast from analysis group Wood Mackenzie said market fundamentals, not geopolitical tensions, are the driving force behind crude oil prices.
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