Europe is heading into a severe fuel shortage, and this is bad news for European drivers, industry, and anyone facing a cold winter.

• Saudi Arabia has halted energy exports to Western Europe after Houthi drone attacks badly damaged a key pipeline to the Red Sea.
• Diesel was already scarce because Ukrainian strikes keep knocking Russian refineries offline, and Zelensky says the attacks will continue despite Trump's call to stop.
• European gas storage is at its lowest level since records began, so this could be the worst winter since World War II.
• High fuel prices are already forcing commuters off the road, and governments may soon divert energy from factories to homes, threatening jobs.
• Voters are punishing establishment parties: most working-class Germans in a recent state election backed the AFD, driven largely by economic pain.

Outlook: Petrol stations in Europe could run dry within weeks, and the Middle East conflict is expected to drag on, keeping fuel tight and prices high well past this winter.