The Great King is dead.

The news, announced late on Thursday on state television, came after the king was admitted to hospital on 31 December suffering from pneumonia.

His successor is his half-brother Crown Prince Salman. On Friday morning the new king vowed to maintain the same approach as his predecessors.

“We will, with God’s support, maintain the straight path that this country has advanced on since its establishment by the late King Abdulaziz,” Salman said in a speech broadcast on state TV.

Oil prices nevertheless surged, as markets speculated about a possible shift in the kingdom’s policy of allowing crude prices to fall.

SOURCE: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/22/saudi-arabia-king-abdullah-dies