OIL prices jumped again yesterday after a threat by Iran to disrupt crude supplies to the West triggered a renewed bout of nervousness in energy markets. The sabre-rattling comments by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, IranÂ’s Supreme Leader, at a rally in Tehran on Sunday, helped to drive US light crude prices up by a further 77 cents in afternoon trading in London, on the back of steep gains of $1.99 on Friday. YesterdayÂ’s continued price rises pushed the cost of a barrel of US light crude back above $73 a barrel, while benchmark London Brent added a further 98 cents to $72.01 a barrel.
Ayatollah Khamenei’s remarks dealt a blow to hopes for a compromise between Iran and the West over its nuclear programme, coming just days before today’s presentation of Western negotiating proposals to Tehran by Javier Solana, the European Union’s foreign policy chief. “If you make any mistake, definitely shipment of energy from this region will be jeopardised. You have to know this,” the ayatollah said.