VIENNA, July 31 (UPI) -- With oil prices nearing monthly lows, energy analysts are mixed over the future price as pressure on Iran and a declining U.S. dollar weigh on the market.
Mohammad Ali Khatibi, the Iranian representative to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, said recently that tension between the United States and Iran and a declining value of the dollar could push oil prices to $500 per barrel.
"If the region comes to the brink of war, the oil supply not only from Iran but also from the region as a whole will be stopped as 40 percent of the world oil export is carried out through the Strait of Hormuz," he said.
OPEC representatives, however, countered that relieving the pressure on Iran would bring the price of oil to around $75 per barrel, the Trend Capital News Agency reported Thursday.
As the second-largest oil producer in OPEC, Iran had a total output in June of around 3.8 million barrels per day.
Meanwhile, energy analysts say the current geopolitical climate and the faltering world economy will continue to put a strain on the energy market, keeping oil prices far above what fundamentals would warrant, the report said.
