Mideast Tension Behind Oil Price Hike: White House

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, April 04, 2002

Mideast Tension Behind Oil Price Hike: White House

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The mounting tensions in the Middle East characterized by Israeli attacks on the Palestinians was the "contributory factor" behind the oil price hike in the United States, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said on Wednesday.

"There are several factors that contribute to it, including the tensions in the Middle East. That is a contributory factor to it," he said.

Fleischer said that the rise in the price of gasoline "affects Americans of all walks of life" throughout the country.

Another factor that was attributed to the oil price rise was the economic recovery of the country, he added.

Fleischer also played down the calls by Iran and Iraq for an oil embargo on Israel and the United States, saying that "they have not been met with much agreement anywhere in the Arab world".

Crude oil prices, pushed up mainly by the Middle East crisis, increased by over 30 percent between February 1 and April, according to reports.

Local experts worried that the high oil prices could threaten to slow the economic recovery in the United States, the world's largest oil consumer.

"There remains, however, a significant risk that the economy will dip back into recession," Standard and Poor's chief economist David Wyss said in a report.

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