Oil prices have fallen sharply since the beginning of the week, Commerzbank’s FX analyst Carsten Fritsch notes.

Price of Brent oil slides below the $75

“The price of Brent oil slid below the $75 per barrel mark in the morning, after trading at just under $79 on Friday. Yesterday, weak data from China initially led to selling pressure. The 4% price drop today is due to reports that Israel could spare Iran’s oil and nuclear facilities in the announced retaliation and instead attack military targets.”

“According to the Washington Post, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu told this to the US government. This would also significantly reduce the risk of supply disruptions. Some Arab Gulf states had feared that in the event of an Israeli attack on Iranian oil facilities, Iran backed militias could respond by attacking oil facilities in neighboring countries.”