Oil price passes $100 a barrel as Khamenei's son named new Iranian leader

Published: 09 March 2026
The English Chronicle Desk
The English Chronicle Online

Global oil prices surged past $100 a barrel for the first time since 2022 today after Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the slain ayatollah, as its new supreme leader, defying US threats and plunging the Middle East deeper into conflict .

Benchmark Brent crude jumped more than 20 per cent in early Asian trading, briefly topping $114 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate rose nearly 29 per cent to $119.96 per barrel . The spike marks the first time oil has breached the triple-digit threshold since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine four years ago .

The price surge follows nine days of intensifying warfare after US-Israeli strikes killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28, an attack that has since removed an estimated 20 million barrels of oil from the global market each day . The Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil normally passes, has been effectively closed for about a week, halting the movement of hundreds of oil tankers and disrupting global energy flows .

Iran’s clerical leadership confirmed early Monday that the 56-year-old Mojtaba Khamenei had been selected by the 88-member Assembly of Experts to succeed his father, despite warnings from President Donald Trump that any successor would be unacceptable . An announcer on state television read a statement declaring him “the third leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran, based on the decisive vote of the respected representatives of the Assembly of Experts” .

The appointment represents a direct rebuke to Trump, who had declared last week that “Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me” and insisted that any new leader must have US approval . In an interview with ABC News before the announcement, Trump warned that if the new leader “doesn’t get approval from us he’s not going to last long” .

Mojtaba Khamenei, who bears a striking resemblance to his father, has long been considered a hardliner with close ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps . He served in non-combat roles during the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war and was sanctioned by the US Treasury in 2019 for working with the Guard and the Basij militia “to advance his father’s destabilising regional ambitions and oppressive domestic objectives” . Analysts say he operated for years as his father’s gatekeeper and, in practice, a “mini-supreme leader” .

His elevation locks hardliners firmly in control in Tehran and signals that Iran’s leadership has rejected any prospect of compromise, seeing no path forward except confrontation, revenge and endurance . “Mojtaba is even worse and more hardline than his father,” said Alan Eyre, a former US diplomat and Iran specialist, adding that he was the preferred candidate of the Guards. “He’s going to have a lot of revenge to exact” .

Iran launched fresh missile attacks at Israel hours after the announcement, with state media showing projectiles bearing the slogan “At Your Command, Sayyid Mojtaba” . Explosions were also heard in Qatar, home to a major US air base, while Bahrain’s state oil company declared force majeure on its shipments after an Iranian attack set its sole oil refinery ablaze . Saudi Arabia warned Tehran it would be the “biggest loser” if it continues to attack Arab states, after a new drone attack apparently targeted its massive Shaybah oil field .

The conflict has triggered a regional production crisis. Iraq’s oil output has already plunged about 60 per cent due to a shortage of available tankers, falling from approximately 430,000 barrels per day before the conflict to around 170,000-180,000 barrels per day . The United Arab Emirates and Kuwait have also begun cutting production as storage facilities rapidly fill up due to congestion in the Strait of Hormuz .

Morgan Chase estimates that supply disruptions could reach 300,000 barrels per day this weekend and potentially approach 600,000 barrels per day if storage capacity is exhausted . Goldman Sachs monitoring shows oil flow through the Strait of Hormuz has plunged about 90 per cent, warning that if the crisis continues throughout March, prices could challenge the historic highs of 2008 and 2022 .

An Iranian Revolutionary Guard spokesperson threatened that continued attacks could push prices even higher, warning: “If you can tolerate oil at more than $200 per barrel, continue this game” .

Financial markets across Asia tumbled in response. Japan’s Nikkei 225 plunged more than 7 per cent in early trading, while South Korea’s Kospi fell by a similar margin . Australia’s ASX 200 declined by over 4 per cent, and Singapore’s Straits Times Index opened 1.9 per cent lower . US stock futures also saw substantial losses, with S&P 500 futures down 1.7 per cent .

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung warned that the steep rise in fuel prices could rattle the country’s economy and called on officials to accelerate efforts to diversify fuel routes away from the Strait of Hormuz . The Chinese government has instructed leading refineries to halt exports of diesel and gasoline, while South Korea is considering implementing a price cap on oil for the first time in 30 years .

Trump downplayed the economic impact, posting on Truth Social that “short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace” . US Energy Secretary Chris Wright insisted any increase in petrol prices would be “temporary” .

Energy experts warn that markets could remain volatile as long as the conflict threatens key oil infrastructure and shipping routes in the Gulf. “A deficit of 20m barrels per day is hitting global oil balances with no sign of relief,” said analyst Clayton Seigle .

The appointment marks the first hereditary transfer of the position of supreme leader since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, something the founders of the republic denounced when they overthrew the monarchy . Analysts say this represents a shift away from the traditional religious leadership that was crucial to the founding of the Islamic Republic .

“The system is unable to reform despite massive external and internal pressure,” said Saeid Golkar, an expert on Iran’s security services at the University of Tennessee. “All they could find was another Khamenei” .

Israel’s military had warned before the appointment that any successor would also be a target . Shortly after the announcement, the Israeli military claimed strikes on command centres in Isfahan targeting Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and Basij forces .

The death toll from the conflict continues to rise, with at least 1,230 people killed in Iran, 397 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials in those countries . The US military announced a seventh American service member has died of injuries sustained during an Iranian attack on troops stationed in Saudi Arabia .

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