Oil prices fell on Monday, to recede a rally on Friday, as investors awaited the repercussions of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian resistance - led by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) - on the rest of the countries, amid fears that this may push prices up and deal a new blow to the global economy.
Brent crude futures for December delivery fell 0.4% to $90.55 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 0.3% to $86.06 in morning trading.
Crude rose about 6 percent on Friday, the biggest daily rise in percentage terms since April, as investors took into account the breadth of conflict in the Middle East.
For the week, Brent posted record gains, up 7.5%, while WTI gained 5.9%.
Hiroyuki Kikukawa, president of NS Trading, a unit of Nissan Securities, said investors were trying to "see the impact of the conflict while the large-scale ground offensive has not yet begun the 24-hour deadline Israel has given" for residents of the northern half of Gaza to head south.
With the beginning of the tenth day of Operation "Al-Aqsa Flood", the occupation army continued its intensive bombardment of the Gaza Strip, targeting civilians on a large scale, bringing the number of martyrs to about 2700,9 and the wounded to nearly <>,<>, while the resistance responded by shelling the Israeli depth, and confirmed its readiness to face any ground invasion.
International officials warn of economic repercussions of aggression on Gaza (Al Jazeera)
Where are oil prices headed?
"The impact that may include oil-producing countries has been taken into account to some extent, but if an actual land invasion occurs and it has an impact on oil supplies, prices can easily exceed $100 per barrel," Kikukawa said.
The conflict in the Middle East has had little impact on global oil and gas supplies, as Israel is not a major producer.
But confrontations between the Palestinian resistance and Israel pose one of the most significant geopolitical risks to oil markets since Russia's war on Ukraine last year, amid concerns about any possible escalation involving Iran.
Market participants are assessing what a wider conflict might mean for supplies from countries in the world's largest oil-producing region, including Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
A report by Bloomberg warned that the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian resistance – which erupted on the seventh of October – is capable of disrupting the global economy and pushing it towards recession, especially if other parties are dragged towards it.
Any escalation in the conflict and the entry of other parties could push oil prices to $150 a barrel, with global growth falling to 1.7 percent, a recession that cuts about $<> trillion from global output.
Gold retreats from one-month high
Gold prices fell today after hitting their highest level in nearly a month, with mounting fears of conflict between Israel and the Palestinians pushing the precious metal up more than 3% in the previous session.
The yellow metal fell more than 1% in spot transactions to $1911,9.0 an ounce and U.S. gold futures fell 87.1924% to $9,<>.<>.
Gold, seen as a safe investment in times of turmoil, hit its highest level since Sept. 20 at $1934,82.3 an ounce earlier in the session, after rising 4.7% on Friday in its highest daily increase in <> months.