BlackRock CEO Fink warns of 'global recession' if oil goes to US$150, BBC reports

BlackRock chief executive Larry Fink said oil prices could reach US$150 (HK$1,172.8) a barrel and cause a “global recession” if Iran “remains a threat” even after the war ends.

“If there is a cessation of war, and yet Iran remains a threat, a threat to trade, a threat to the Strait of Hormuz, a threat to this peaceful coexistence of the GCC region, then I would argue that we could have years of above US$100 closer to US$150 oil which has profound implications in the economy,” Fink told BBC’s Big Boss Interview podcast published on Wednesday.

“We will have global recession,” he said, when asked if oil stays at US$150 a barrel.

Oil prices have remained volatile and risen sharply since the US-Israeli war on Iran began. However, prices sank about 4 percent on Wednesday after reports the US had sent Iran a 15-point proposal aimed at ending the war, raising prospects of a ceasefire.

The war has all but halted shipments of oil and liquefied natural gas through the Strait of Hormuz, which typically carries about one-fifth of the world’s gas and crude supply, causing what the International Energy Agency has called the biggest-ever oil supply disruption.

Reuters