Oil and gas prices are surging, but the impact is small for nowpublished at 14:58 GMT
14:58 GMT
Dharshini David
Deputy economics editor
In a spate of breathtaking moments, the surge in oil and gas prices might appear another – not least as households around the world remain scarred by the spike in energy prices a few years ago.
What could the economics implications be? It depends on how far those prices go – and how long they remain elevated.
But the impact of the current level of those prices suggests the impact could be relatively muted.
Economists reckon that broadly, a sustained rise in oil prices of about 5% adds about 0.1% to inflation in major economies – so the current increase in crude costs would point to a rise of about 0.2% to inflation.
But then there’s gas futures to consider. They are now up more than 40% which, if sustained, may mean a considerable bump to energy bills (albeit not until the summer). Even so, we’re a long way off the peak movements we saw during the war in Ukraine
As it stands, barring a more extensive surge in energy costs, the impact on inflation could be unhelpful – but not disastrous . However, these are early days, and much could change.