The price of crude, which had gained 11% to nearly $94 a barrel of Brent crude since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, fell back to around $88 on Wednesday. The United States and Saudi Arabia have announced their willingness to engage in diplomatic efforts to maintain stability in the Middle East. And, while the situation appears to be temporarily stabilized on the borders of the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, a relative optimism has spread to the markets. They are counting on a localized conflict. "For the time being, we are well below the upward impact that the war in Ukraine had in the first few weeks," says Francis Perrin, research director at Iris. During the Russian offensive in February 2022, Brent crude was propelled to nearly $130 a barrel. It had remained highly volatile and had still hovered around $120 in June of the first year of the war.
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But "if the conflict spreads, we move into another dimension," says a French minister, "you will regret it...
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