Egyptian Petroleum Minister Tarek Al-Marri confirmed that the sharp rise in oil prices due to the ongoing war in Ukraine will have a “negative impact” on the Egyptian economy.

“The change in oil prices is temporary and changes every day. This is not in Egypt’s interest,” El Molla said in a statement on Sunday.

Explaining that his country “relies on imports to meet domestic demand,” he said: “Egypt is an importer of crude oil and its derivatives, so there is a constant desire and expectation so that this does not affect the price increase in the system.”
But the minister said: “At the same time, gas prices are also rising, and we are one of the exporters of liquefied natural gas, and we can use this time to reduce exports. The negative impact of high oil prices.”

Al-Mulla concluded, stressing that “these prices are affected by the whole world,” expressing his hope that “they will not last long.”

On Friday, benchmark Brent crude closed at $118.11 a barrel, the highest since August 2008, as Russian exports virtually halted.
The price of a barrel of oil for May delivery rose 6.92% in Friday’s trading session.

The price of Brent crude is up 21.9% since Russia invaded Ukraine.

On Friday, the price of a barrel of New York West Texas Intermediate (April) rose 7.43% to settle at $115.68 for the first time since September 2008.