Oil prices have jumped after Qatar’s energy minister warned he expects all oil and gas exporters in the Gulf to stop production within days, BBC reports.

Saad al-Kaabi has told The Financial Times that the conflict in the Middle East could “bring down the economies of the world”.

Brent crude oil has risen to $89.17 a barrel on Friday, up 4.4 per cent from the end of trading on Thursday.

If ships were unable to proceed through the Strait of Hormuz, Kaabi said that in two to three weeks, the price of oil could soar much further to $150 a barrel.

Kaabi told The FT: “If this war continues for a few weeks, GDP growth around the world will be impacted. Everybody’s energy price is going to go higher. There will be shortages of some products and there will be a chain reaction of factories that can’t supply.”

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