Since the US and Israel first attacked Iran on February 28, war has erupted in the Middle East. Only 13 days, the costs have been amazing.
The loss of human life has been great. At least 1,444 Iranians were to be killed to March 13, according to Iran’s health ministry, with at least 168 children who were killed in strike at the elementary school that preliminary reports indicate the United States did. Israel has attacked Lebanon to be killed more than 600 people and flee more than 800,000. Iran’s attacks across the region and its proxy Hezbollah’s attacks against Israel have killed more than 60 people and injured hundreds more. And 13 US service members they are dead.
Since the US and Israel first attacked Iran on February 28, war has erupted in the Middle East. Only 13 days, the costs have been amazing.
The loss of human life has been great. At least 1,444 Iranians were to be killed to March 13, according to Iran’s health ministry, with at least 168 children who were killed in strike at the elementary school that preliminary reports indicate the United States did. Israel has attacked Lebanon to be killed more than 600 people and flee more than 800,000. Iran’s attacks across the region and its proxy Hezbollah’s attacks against Israel have killed more than 60 people and injured hundreds more. And 13 US service members they are dead.
But the economic costs have also been staggering. Iran has launched missiles and drones at major economic centers such as Doha and Dubai as well as closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 percent of the world’s oil normally passes.
“Besides other wars in the Persian Gulf, this is the first conflict since World War II to directly affect cities and facilities that serve as hubs in the globalized economy,” Esfandyar Batmanghelidj. he wrote in Foreign Policy.
From fuel prices to canceled flights, here are some key statistics that paint a picture of how the war has already lifted the world economy.
Officials of the US Department of Defense released this estimate in a closed meeting of lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Tuesday. New York Times information. That figure does not include US military spending for the months before February 28.
In previous reports, security officials he said Arms worth 5.6 billion dollars were used in the first two days. The United States alone used approximately 1,250 defensive and offensive bombs in the first 36 hours of Operation Epic Fury, according to analysis by Macdonald Amoah, Morgan D. Bazilian, and Jahara Matisek in Foreign Policy.
“Used bombs, and the minerals needed to build them, are a defense-industrial problem for the West, and especially the United States,” they wrote.
Following initially silent market reaction, the price of a barrel of Brent crude oil, an international benchmark, in short it increased to $119.50 during intraday trading on March 9 before falling back below $100 later in the day. Prices have moved in and out of triple digits since March 11. Markets are “finally waking up to the seriousness of the threat of an Iran war to the global economy,” FP’s Keith Johnson said. information.
The spike is the largest of the previous year, surpassing that of June 2025 during the 12-day war between Iran, Israel and the United States. As of Friday, oil continues to trade above $100 a barrel.
On Wednesday, the International Energy Agency he announced that its 32 member countries unanimously agreed to draw on their emergency reserves of more than 1.2 billion barrels to help ease market disruptions and deal with rising oil prices. This is the largest oil release, and only the sixth scheduled, in the organization’s history.
The US is also temporarily allowing countries to buy restricted Russian oil that is already at sea, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said. he announced on Thursday.
The Trump administration “has tried to launch all of its policies — military, financial, and energy-related — to mitigate the consequences of the war it started, and it’s all been in vain so far,” Johnson said. he wrote.
The price of gas in the United States has has risen to more than $3.50 a gallon on average, more than $0.50 higher than this time last year.
Oil and natural gas (LNG) exports from the Gulf states have been severely affected by the war, and the loss of producers’ income has been significant. The consulting group Wood Mackenzie estimates that Saudi Arabia has lost a large share of revenue – $4.5 billion since the war began, according to Financial Times.
State-owned QatarEnergy, the world’s second-biggest LNG exporter, shut down production last week, causing a global impact. helium and fertilizer markets.
A war in the Middle East could “bring down the world economy,” Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi warned Times.
Iran first vowed to open fire on any ship trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz on March 2. Since then, about 500 oil and gas tankers, 500 container ships, and six cruise ships have been intercepted on either side of the strait. Guardian information.
At least 22 civilian ships-including oil tankers, container ships, and many other cargoes-operating in and around the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman have been attacked by Iran since the start of the war.
In his first statement to the public since taking power, the new leader of Iran, Mojtaba Khamenei, he said on Thursday that “the barrier to the Strait of Hormuz must definitely remain in place.”
Among the results plant in insurance costs for ships operating in the Gulf, the United States International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) announced that it will provide marine insurance to some yet-to-be-specified ships, as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to get energy shipping through the channel again. DFC will coordinate with the U.S. Central Command and the U.S. Department of the Treasury to implement the program, and Chubb Insurance Company will serve as leading partner.
As of March 11, more than 46,000 birds in and out of the Middle East had been erased. Iran has targeted airports in several countries in the region, including the world’s busiest international airport in Dubai. Hamad International Airport in Doha suspended all flights from March 1 to 6 and is still operating at a fraction of its normal traffic.
Flight interruption stuck hundreds of thousands of travelers in the area at the start of the war, hampering efforts to evacuate them. Sam Skov of FP information on March 10 that the U.S. State Department rejected offers from retired officials to assist in such efforts.
At the same time, the price of jet fuel has has risen even faster than oil. That cost will be passed on to international consumers, as airlines announce fare hikes and schedule cuts.
