Oil is an irreplaceable strategic material, which has always been coveted by powerful forces. From the perspective of development, it will only be used less and less, and the price will be higher and higher. Judging from the political layout, the dispute between the United States and Iraq. The reasons for the rise in oil prices are very complicated, including the contradiction between supply and demand, international political factors and domestic oil production. In short, it is the result of comprehensive action. The crisis between the United States and Iraq, which affected the world's "nerves", escalated sharply from yesterday because the Iraqi parliament "suggested that the government refuse to accept" the UN resolution. At the same time, US President Bush said that the United States will take large-scale military action. Affected by this, the international crude oil price rose again, which attracted the attention of global investors. The Iraqi National Assembly suggested that the government refuse to accept the UN Security Council resolution 144 1 on Iraq's weapons inspection. US President Bush said at the White House that the United States would launch a large-scale military strike against Iraq if the United Nations failed to verify Iraq's weapons of mass destruction. Major American newspapers recently quoted government officials as saying that the Ministry of National Defense has planned to use as many as 250,000 troops to launch a military strike against Iraq. Brent crude oil futures in London rose 72 cents to $24.30 a barrel in the face of US military strikes. In new york, US light crude oil futures rose 47 cents to $26.25 a barrel. Related international stock markets fell. The US Dow closed at 8358, down 178, while Nasdaq closed at 13 19, down 40 points. At present, there are different views on the prospect of international oil prices, and there is a big gap. Standard & Poor's analysts predict that although the Iraq war will not spread to other parts of the Middle East, oil prices may rise for "two weeks" after the war breaks out. What is even more disturbing is that the terrorist attacks on Saudi oil bases will lead to a sharp rise in oil prices, which may even reach "100 USD" per barrel in the short term. Saudi Arabia's economic minister said that once the war breaks out, oil prices may not actually rise, but may also fall. At present, the focus seems to be more on inventory. US crude oil inventories increased by 165438+ 10,000 barrels, distillate oil inventories including heating oil decreased by 600,000 barrels, and refinery operating rate increased by 0.5%. It has a certain stabilizing effect on the market price of crude oil. When the US crude oil inventory increased to 6.5438+0.9 million barrels in the previous period, the crude oil price only dropped by 865.438+0 cents. At that time, the factors affecting the market decline were the overproduction of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and the oil export volume of Iraq. Recently, US crude oil inventories have only increased by 165438+ 10,000 barrels, so the pressure on the market is relatively weak, and there is still considerable room for oil prices to rise. The above is for reference only and for personal analysis.