Prolonged high oil prices could ‘crimp’ AI boom, WTO warns

An extended period of high oil prices as a result of war in the Middle East could “crimp” the AI boom, the World Trade Organization’s chief economist has warned.

“An extended period of high oil prices as a result of war in the Middle East could “crimp” the AI boom, the World Trade Organization’s chief economist has warned”

The Guardian

The war and its impact on energy and fertiliser costs is the main risk to the global economy identified in the WTO’s latest Global Trade Outlook.

The Guardian

But the Geneva-based body also raised a question mark about the continued strength of AI investment, which in 2025 helped to offset the hit to global trade from Donald Trump’s tariffs.

"There is an interesting possible interaction between the Middle East conflict and the AI boom, in part because the boom is very energy-intensive,” said the WTO’s chief economist, Robert Staiger.

"If the price of energy continues to be elevated for the whole year, that could put a crimp on the AI boom.”

The Guardian

He added: “Because that investment is very concentrated in a number of very large firms, and the technology is still ultimately unproven in terms of how much it can deliver, there is a bit of uncertainty there in terms of where the future’s going.”

“An extended period of high oil prices as a result of war in the Middle East could “crimp” the AI boom, the World Trade Organization’s chief economist has warned”

The Guardian

Underlining the importance of the sector, the WTO calculated that in the first three quarters of last year, about 70% of all investment growth in North America was accounted for by AI-related goods.

By comparison, in the three years before the catastrophic US housing crash of 2008, property made up 30% of investment growth.

The Guardian