Foreign oil companies evacuate their employees from Iraq
Reuters reported on Saturday that several foreign oil companies have begun evacuating their foreign staff from oil fields in Iraq to Kuwait.
This comes amid fears of an escalating conflict in the region, as the US military in recent days abruptly canceled a major military exercise planned for an elite paratrooper unit, a move that has sparked speculation within the US Department of Defense about the possibility of sending ground troops to the Middle East as the confrontation with Iran widens.
Financial and consulting institutions have warned of potential repercussions on global oil supplies if the war with Iran continues, pointing to the possibility of a large part of production being halted due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Approximately 20% of the world's daily oil demand passes through the Strait of Hormuz. With the strait effectively closed for seven days, this meant that roughly 140 million barrels of oil, equivalent to about 1.4 days of global demand, were unable to reach the market. link
