Despite the announcement of a deal to end the Iran conflict and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, energy experts caution that global oil and gas markets will not return to normal quickly, with supply disruptions expected to persist for months.

The agreement, reached on Sunday, has eased immediate market fears and triggered a fall in crude prices at the start of the week. Brent crude, the international benchmark, slipped by $3.45 to $83.89 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate fell $4.03 to $80.85 per barrel. Even with the decline, prices remain significantly higher than the pre-war level of around $70 per barrel.

Analysts say the underlying disruption to global supply chains cannot be resolved in the short term. Shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, which normally carry around one-fifth of the world’s oil and refined fuel supplies, were severely disrupted during the conflict, leaving tankers stranded in the Persian Gulf for more than three months.

Daniel Evans, global head of fuels and refining research at S&P Global Energy, said the recovery process will be gradual and dependent on logistical and financial conditions. He noted that insurance coverage, crew availability and safety assurances will all need to be restored before shipping activity can return to normal levels.

“There needs to be confidence that there is a safe window to bring vessels in, load them and move them out again,” Evans said, adding that restarting operations will require coordination across multiple sectors.

Even once shipments resume, the physical movement of oil remains slow. Tankers can take weeks or even months to reach refineries across global markets, meaning the impact of renewed flows will not be immediate.

Complicating the recovery further, several Middle Eastern producers were forced to halt or reduce output during the conflict due to storage constraints, a process known as shut-ins. Restarting those facilities is expected to take time, particularly in countries with more complex extraction conditions.

Alan Gelder, senior vice president at energy analytics firm Wood Mackenzie, said Gulf producers such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates could recover more quickly due to alternative export routes. However, he warned that Iraq and other heavily affected producers may require up to a year to fully restore output.

Investment in new energy infrastructure has also been delayed by the conflict, further slowing long-term recovery. Analysts say companies are unlikely to restart major capital spending until there is confidence that stability in the Strait of Hormuz will last beyond a short-term ceasefire.

As Daniel Sternoff of Columbia University noted, uncertainty remains over how quickly normal shipping conditions can be restored, leaving the global energy market in a cautious transition phase despite diplomatic progress.

A major gap in retirement wealth across Europe has been revealed in new analysis showing that older households in some countries are more than 30 times wealthier than those in others, underlining the powerful role of housing, pensions and inheritance in shaping financial security in later life.

According to data from the European Central Bank Household Finance and Consumption Survey (HFCS), published in mid-2023, households aged 65–74 in the euro area hold a median net wealth of €185,300. But across 22 European countries, figures range from just €36,300 in Latvia to €1.22 million in Luxembourg.

Luxembourg stands far ahead of all other countries, with Malta the next highest at €310,000. Excluding smaller EU states, Belgium and Ireland top the ranking, with median net wealth of €307,700 and €296,700 respectively among older households.

France follows at €232,800, closely matched by Germany at €232,100, while Spain records €200,800. Among the euro area’s largest economies, Italy sits lowest at €168,000, trailing France and Germany by more than €60,000.

At the other end of the scale, several countries remain well below the euro area average. Slovenia, Greece, Czechia and Slovakia all report median wealth levels around or just above €100,000. The Netherlands, despite its strong pension system, records €134,400, placing it below many of its Western European peers.

The lowest levels appear in Eastern and Southern Europe, with Latvia at the bottom, followed by Lithuania (€51,400), Hungary (€54,400), Estonia (€73,500), Croatia (€75,900) and Portugal (€99,200).

The data also shows a clear drop in wealth among older age groups. For households aged 75 and over, median net wealth in the euro area falls to €144,400—around 22% lower than those aged 65–74. Only Luxembourg and Belgium buck this trend.

Experts say the differences reflect long-term structural factors rather than individual saving behaviour alone. Housing ownership is one of the strongest drivers, with countries where homeownership is widespread and property values have risen showing significantly higher wealth among retirees.

Professor Fabian Pfeffer of LMU Munich said these patterns reflect “the long-term interaction of housing markets, welfare states, pension systems, credit institutions, family transfers and historical pathways into asset ownership.”

He added that strong public pension systems can reduce the need for private wealth accumulation, meaning lower net wealth does not necessarily indicate financial insecurity.

Toby Whelton of the Intergenerational Foundation pointed to growing reliance on family support, warning that access to housing and wealth is increasingly shaped by inheritance and parental assistance rather than earnings alone.

Net wealth data includes assets such as property, savings, investments and business holdings, minus liabilities like mortgages and loans. However, it does not account for public or occupational pension entitlements, which remain a key source of retirement security across Europe.