Level 1 - Absolute Beginner
Oil is more expensive today. One barrel costs about 116 dollars.
In July it was only about 86 dollars. So the price is much higher now.
Traders think the United States may attack Iran. That makes them afraid.
When oil costs more, fuel can cost more. Food and travel can cost more too.
- oil
- A thick liquid used to make fuel.
- price
- The money you pay for something.
- barrel
- A big round container for oil.
- trader
- A person who buys and sells.
- afraid
- Feeling fear.
- fuel
- Something burned to make power, like gasoline.
- travel
- To go from one place to another.
- expensive
- Costing a lot of money.
Level 2 - Elementary
The price of Brent crude oil rose about 3 percent on Friday to 116.46 dollars a barrel. It is the highest price since April 30.
The jump came after a US envoy said a strike on Iran this weekend was possible. President Trump said he knew nothing about it.
In late July, Brent fell to about 86 dollars when the fighting paused. In September it was near 97 dollars. Now it is much higher.
Oil matters to everyone. It changes the price of gasoline, shipping and many goods in the store.
- crude oil
- Oil as it comes out of the ground.
- envoy
- A person who speaks for a government in other countries.
- paused
- Stopped for a short time.
- gasoline
- Fuel for cars.
- shipping
- Moving goods by ship, truck or plane.
- goods
- Things that are made to be sold.
- highest
- Bigger than all the others.
- jump
- A sudden rise.
Level 3 - Intermediate
Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, rose about 2.9 percent on Friday to 116.46 dollars a barrel, its highest level since April 30. The move followed remarks by Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey, who said a strike on Iran this weekend was possible. President Donald Trump replied that he knew nothing about it, but traders did not wait for clarity.
The climb is steep when set against recent months. Brent dropped to about 86 dollars in late July when fighting paused, and stood near 97 dollars in September when Iran spoke of a tanker route with Oman. A rise of roughly 30 dollars in under three months shows how closely the price follows each headline from the Gulf.
The reason is the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage that carries a large share of the world's seaborne oil. Attacks on tankers, mines and threats to the region's undersea internet cables all raise what insurers and shippers charge, and those costs reach drivers and shoppers.
For households the effect is slow but real. Higher crude tends to lift gasoline, airfares and delivery costs within weeks, while central banks that hoped to cut interest rates must now worry that energy prices could push inflation up again.
- benchmark
- A standard used to compare prices or results.
- clarity
- A clear understanding of the facts.
- steep
- Rising or falling very sharply.
- seaborne
- Carried by ships on the sea.
- insurers
- Companies that cover the cost of losses.
- household
- A family or group living in one home.
- inflation
- A general rise in prices.
- energy
- Fuel and power, such as oil and gas.
Level 4 - Advanced
Crude oil has become the market's loudest barometer of the Iran conflict. Brent, the international benchmark, gained about 2.9 percent on Friday to 116.46 dollars a barrel, the highest close since April 30, after Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey, said a weekend strike was possible and President Donald Trump professed ignorance of any such plan. Investors, unwilling to wait for clarification, bid prices up.
Set against the recent range, the move is dramatic. Brent slid to roughly 86 dollars in late July when hostilities paused and hovered near 97 dollars in September amid talk of a Hormuz shipping arrangement with Oman. A gain of some 30 dollars in less than three months shows how tightly the price tracks every headline from the Gulf.
The transmission mechanism runs through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for a considerable fraction of seaborne crude. Tanker attacks, mines and now threats against undersea telecommunications cables lift war risk premiums charged by insurers and shipowners, and those premiums are ultimately passed on to refiners, airlines and consumers.
The macroeconomic stakes are awkward. Central banks that were edging toward easing must weigh the possibility that an energy shock reignites inflation, while equity markets, already jittery, face higher input costs just as companies prepare to report earnings. Whether oil retreats will depend less on supply than on whether the weekend passes quietly.
- barometer
- An indicator that measures the state of something.
- professed
- Claimed openly, sometimes without proof.
- hovered
- Stayed around the same level.
- chokepoint
- A narrow passage where traffic can easily be blocked.
- premium
- An extra amount paid for protection or risk.
- refiners
- Companies that turn crude oil into fuel.
- easing
- Lowering interest rates or relaxing conditions.
- jittery
- Nervous and easily upset.
Talk about this article with KatePractice this story's vocabulary in a real spoken conversation with your AI tutor