Prices for gold and oil are surging following U.S. and Israel attacks on Iran over the weekend. Extending a trend that began in late 2025, investors continued to abandon higher-risk assets in favor of safety as hostilities in the Middle East entered their third day.
Stocks were in retreat on Monday. All three major indices slid at the open, and with no clarity on the timeline of the Iran conflict, commodities could continue to outperform as uncertainty — a familiar theme since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term — grips global markets.
Here’s what you need to know about the war’s affect on gold, oil and gas prices so far.
At press time, Brent crude — the global oil benchmark — was trading for $78.44 per barrel. That marks a one-year high and a nearly 41% increase over the price per barrel on Dec. 16, when oil was trading at its one-year low.
Prices for West Texas Intermediate — the U.S. oil benchmark — have also surged to $71.14 and are likely to challenge their one-year high of $73.82 per barrel. Prices Monday morning were more than 29% higher than the one-year low of $55.14 on Dec. 16.
Pet protection: See Lemonade’s pet insurance options — save and protect your cat or dog from high vet bills.
“The Iran crisis has entered a dangerous new phase, and markets are reacting accordingly,” Lukman Otunuga, a senior market analyst at FXTM, wrote in an email Monday morning. “With oil surging, volatility spiking, and investors rushing into traditional safe havens, we could see heightened turbulence over the coming days and weeks.”
On the consumer side, the war between Iran and Israel and the U.S. could affect prices at the pump.
Retail gas prices lag the price of oil, but Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, posted on X that “the national average is now up to $2.96/gal,” adding that he believes prices may touch $3 per gallon soon “as the jump in prices begins to show up at more stations.”
War with Iran likely to continue propelling gold prices
That turbulence has spilled into other commodity markets and is also bolstering the price of gold. When trading resumed on Monday, the precious metal jumped 1% to $5,333 per troy ounce, less than 5% off the all-time high gold hit in January.
As a traditional safe-haven asset, gold’s principal price driver is geopolitical unrest.
Angelo Kourkafas, senior global strategist of investment strategy at Edward Jones noted in an email that these “flare-ups can create short term volatility, but recent episodes have produced limited and short-lived market impacts,” which remains the base case expectation for the financial services firm.
Volatility shield: Learn about Newport Gold Group’s precious metals price matching.
Still, short-term volatility can have outsized impacts on precious metal prices. One example came last June, when U.S.-Israel attacks on Iranian nuclear installations propelled the price of gold to less than 1% from its then-all-time high.
According to BullionVault, this most recent price action follows the first-ever full week of gold prices trading above $5,000 per troy ounce.
Must Read
Disclaimer
Artificial Intelligence Disclosure & Legal Disclaimer
AI Content Policy.
To provide our readers with timely and comprehensive coverage, South Florida Reporter uses artificial intelligence (AI) to assist in producing certain articles and visual content.
Articles: AI may be used to assist in research, structural drafting, or data analysis. All AI-assisted text is reviewed and edited by our team to ensure accuracy and adherence to our editorial standards.
Images: Any imagery generated or significantly altered by AI is clearly marked with a disclaimer or watermark to distinguish it from traditional photography or editorial illustrations.
General Disclaimer
The information contained in South Florida Reporter is for general information purposes only.
South Florida Reporter assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions in the contents of the Service. In no event shall South Florida Reporter be liable for any special, direct, indirect, consequential, or incidental damages or any damages whatsoever, whether in an action of contract, negligence or other tort, arising out of or in connection with the use of the Service or the contents of the Service.
The Company reserves the right to make additions, deletions, or modifications to the contents of the Service at any time without prior notice. The Company does not warrant that the Service is free of viruses or other harmful components.
