For months, the big story behind plummeting oil & gas prices has been the U.S. and Canadian on-shore shale boom. The resulting supply glut has caused WTI crude to fall from about $107 on June 20th, to a low of about $45 recently. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia and OPEC have held firm to their Thanksgiving weekend decision to continue pumping at a steady rate. Finally, lackluster demand from emerging countries like China hasn't had enough kick to cause prices to rebound significantly.
So… OPEC countries have been the "steady" ones in all this.
In recent days, however, focus has turned to the Middle East (of all places). Can you imagine? Middle Eastern geopolitics affecting oil prices? It's been awhile since the Mid-East has been the center of attention. Continue reading "Middle Eastern politics begin to affect oil prices again"
