Economic Watch: Energy price surge worsens Europe's cost-of-living pressures
LONDON, March 9 (Xinhua) -- A sharp rise in oil and gas prices amid escalating tensions in the Middle East and fears that the Israel-United States war on Iran could disrupt supplies through the Strait of Hormuz is intensifying Europe's cost-of-living pressures.
Brent crude, the international benchmark, briefly climbed to around 119 U.S. dollars per barrel on Monday, its highest level since mid-2022, before retre