22 December 1973: Opec more than doubles the price of oil

On this day in 1973 Opec, the oil price cartel, more than doubled the price of oil from $5.12 a barrel to $11.65.

On this day in 1973 Opec more than doubled the price of oil overnight from $5.12 a barrel – around $60 in today's money (the price of oil is currently around $50) – to $11.65 (around $145 now). The initial price was in fact as a result of being raised a few months earlier from $3. The price increase caused the legendary 1973 oil crisis, and was a major shock for the Western world economy.

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