What is an oil shock?

The day Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February 2022, the price of crude oil surged over the $100 a barrel mark for the first time since 2014. Soon, economic sanctions would be announced against Russia, with buyers shunning exports from the world’s third largest oil producing country. For over a century, oil has been both a fuel and a barometer for the world economy. But it can also be a double-edged sword as Western countries found out in the 1970s. At the start of the 1970s, the post-war boom was coming to an end. From 1971 onwards, things started going downhill, and oil ended up being at the heart of an unprecedented economic and geopolitical crisis.

How did the 1973 crisis come around? How did the oil-dependent Western countries react? What is the current situation, given Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions!

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A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance.

In partnership with upday UK.

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