Oil pushes to $89 a barrel as Ukraine tensions simmer

The price of crude oil is within sight of a seven-year high

Amid the widespread shortages of all types of energy, including gas and renewables, this winter, the price of oil has taken on an ever-increasing significance for business costs because more electricity is now being generated by oil-powered stations. 

The crisis over Ukraine has helped push up prices of crude oil to almost $89 a barrel on Wednesday, in a further sign that inflation pressures for Irish businesses and households is not going away any time soon. 

It takes about two weeks for any sustained changes to the global crude oil price to pass though to the costs of higher or lower distilled petrol at Irish forecourts.