Australians will feel the pinch of rising oil prices \u201cin a few weeks\u2019 time,\u201d but there is one upside, a retired diplomat said.<\/p>\n
Jane Hardy, a former diplomat whose postings include time in the US, said the recent spike in crude oil prices and fertilisers caused by a restarting of hostilities <\/a>in the Strait of Hormuz \u201cwill come back and affect oil prices in Australia,\u201d but not before natural gas companies reap massive profits<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Iranian strikes on neighbouring countries [in the Middle East], including LNG terminals, has spiked the price of LNG and we\u2019re net exporters, mainly to our region. This is all interlinked, even if the source of the LNG and oil is different. It\u2019s a global impact,\u201d she told news.com.au<\/a>.<\/p>\n She suggested the conflict made Australia into an even more attractive and valuable source of raw energy.<\/p>\n \u201cI am not an expert in energy, but having witnessed, in North Asia during my posting, the enormous impact of our LNG exports to Japan, Korea and China, and others, we are in a very good position to be an alternative supplier. <\/p>\n \u201cApparently the energy markets are shifting and changing very rapidly, as people look for other sources of both crude oil, refined oil and LNG, and we are one of those sources, definitely.\u201d<\/p>\n Recent tit-for-tat strikes in the Strait saw the price of Brent Crude oil back to a two-week high <\/a>of $US76.58 ($110) a barrel.<\/p>\n