-- Oil and gas markets are set for another volatile week of trading after Israel began its long-anticipated ground invasion of Gaza.The biggest risk to crude prices after the invasion remains any escalation to other regional powers. The Middle East supplies about a third of the world’s oil and Iran, which backs Hamas and other regional militant groups, said over the weekend that the incursion “may force everyone to take action.
The outbreak of the conflict has already led to several weeks of sharp swings in intraday trading. One gauge of oil-market volatility, which measures the pace of price moves, climbed to its highest level since June on Friday. As a result, in financial markets, oil has been at the heart of wagers that the conflict could expand beyond Israel and Gaza. Traders have been snapping up options contracts that would profit from a leap in prices above $100 a barrel over recent weeks.
The billionaire investor said a downturn could be "a fake scare" that could catch investors off guard, but it won't last long.TORONTO — With interest rates likely at or near their peak in Canada, experts say consumers shouldn’t expect rates to return to pre-pandemic levels. The central bank is more likely to bring its overnight rate to between two and three per cent, though not anytime soon, said David Macdonald, senior economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.