Oil prices rebounded after Opec announced a surprise cut in production in an attempt to halt the recent decline in the cost of a barrel of crude.
BTW, if you have the habit of reading reliable sources around the world, you expected this. Essentially, the discussion revolved around establishing $100 a barrel as the floor price.
Brent Crude, which yesterday slipped as low as $99.34, rebounded to $100.63 a barrel after Opec claimed it was reining in production because the world is now oversupplied with oil.
The unexpected cut in production was announced early this morning after Opec members met in Vienna. The cartel said that its members would abandon production increases that were announced this summer – when the oil price had soared to nearly $150 a barrel – and would stick to their previous quota limits…
Most of the 520,000 a day cut will have to come from Saudi Arabia, which announced a production increase in July when political pressure from the West was at its height.
George W’s buddies, eh?
Go ahead and charge high prices and keep them high OPEC. You will give the planet the push it needs to obsolete fossil fuel as a power source. Necessity is, after all, the mother of Invention.
Eideard said, “George W’s buddies, eh?”
No, considering the price hike hurts the incumbent party, more like Dem friends.
But, this whole premise is incorrect. How can a changing supply effect prices? According to the Dems, increasing domestic supply can’t effect prices…
Paddy–from Memory USA imports 70% of its oil? So, increase domestic oil supply by 10% (10% of 30% is 3%) meaning in 3-5-10 years, we will only import 67% of our oil. Most commentators only talk about “the psychological effect on the market.”
We can see what OPEC’s psychological reaction is==they slow production thereby maintaining an artificially high price.
Now==who has the stronger hand. The one in charge of 33%, or the one in charge of 67%?
What overrides all of this is the increasing demand from the rest of the world. Yes, the world price of oil is going up regardless of what the USA does.
I don’t mind idiots like you running their heads against the brick wall of finite resources other than your mindset keeps America hostage to Arab Oil.
Paddy==why do you hate America?
We obviously need to run away from oil as fast as we can. In the short term, hybrid cars and alternate hydrocarbons. Coincident with an infrastructure of massive solar and wind-power farming. Coastal wave generators and exotic methods should follow.
The simpletons think food (corn fer crissake) = fuel. Let’s push past them and start collecting some real voltage.
There is no energy shortage. Ask the Sun.
#4 “So, increase domestic oil supply by 10% (10% of 30% is 3%) meaning in 3-5-10 years, we will only import 67% of our oil.”
Now it makes sense why the Dems have resisted increasing dom supply for MANY years… AND made sure we didn’t increase nuke electrical generation either. These actions keep the prices higher.
Very logical now.
Thanks.
No surprise about OPEC keeping the price high. That is their raison d’etre.
Wind, solar, geothermal, et al need to be promoted as much as is practical. But even these are limited. The sun is only out in the daytime, the wind dies down sometimes, none of the above work well in automobiles or aircraft.
What we really need is to figure out fusion. But it has been 10 years away since I was in high school in the 1970s.
It is really a shame to burn petroleum for fuel. It has so many other uses..plastics, textiles, drugs, lubricants, Twinkies, etc.
Although we have a lot of coal, it is kind of a shame to burn that for fuel too. Many uses, including, again, drugs, plastics, textiles, but very importantly, steel. Pittsburgh wasn’t the home of the steel industry because it was sitting on a pile of iron ore. The steel industry located in Pittsburgh because it was sitting on a mountain of coal, which IIRC is used in much higher quantities than ore in steel making.
And liberals everywhere will cheer.
Why is OPEC meeting in Vienna?
@#8: Because they can.
@#3: Now, increase domestic oil supply, increase coal usage, increase nuclear usage, develop solar and wind despite “green” crazies (where I live Republicans promoted and coalition of Democrats and above mentioned green crazies killed the huge wind farm project by endless litigation) and those foreign oil percentage starts nose diving.
In related example of proper long term planning: Iceland where there is huge geothermal energy reserve and small population decided to ween themselves from the oil. Despite doing everything they can and natural benefits they have, time scale is expected to be 50 years! These things can’t happen quickly.
#8 OPEC Arabs travel to the south of France this time of year to enjoy the luxuries of western culture. Their HQ is in Vienna.
#6 What we really need is to figure out fusion. But it has been 10 years away since I was in high school in the 1970s. I think you’re a litle over optimistic for commercial fusion power. 10 years might give us a working prototype. I’m pretty sure fusion power has been 30 years away since I learned to read in the 50s, it was 30 years away when I briefly worked in a fusion lab in the 70s and is still 30 years away now
“But such a power plant likely isn’t feasible for at least 35 years, said Edmund Synakowski, a leading PPPL physicist” in 2003.
see http://tinyurl.com/5odcjo
It would be cheap at $200 a barrel.
I would like to know how Cramer says China is not buying oil; hence it has gotten lower (Cramer: China’s Gone, So Oil’s Headed Lower) :
All the more reason to MANDATE PLUG-IN ELECTRIC CARS !!!
#14 “All the more reason to MANDATE PLUG-IN ELECTRIC CARS !!!”
And collapse every grid in the US…
I have never heard (read) such a negative bunch. Every posting to this blog is simply meant to further your own agenda. When will we stop being so selfish and start to find solutions instead of seeing who can point the biggest finger at the other. I can hardly wait to see how many comments this post receives!
#7 – MikeN,
And liberals everywhere will cheer.
I can’t speak for anyone else, you see, most liberals are pretty free thinkers and don’t necessarily follow party lines the way you neocon right wing fanatics do.
That said. Yes. I’ll cheer.
Someone has to help provide the economic incentive to get the hell of oil. We’ve proven that we as a nation are too damn stupid to make smart choices just because they are smart choices. We need the economic kick in the ass before we’ll stop driving so much or buy more fuel efficient vehicles, or even a little extra attic insulation.
If the kick in the ass comes from OPEC, well, that wouldn’t have been my choice. I’d have rather had a revenue neutral carbon tax that would help our economy instead of the Saudis. I’d have also been fine with a carbon trading system that at least benefits the U.S. traders.
But, since we can’t do shit for ourselves, I’ll take whatever I can get. We have to get off the oil.
As someone who worked in oil and gas trading/marketing I must say that (begin sarcasm) I am truly shocked that they would influence prices (end sarcasm).
Don’t just look at oil prices folks. Take a look at many other commodities such as wheat and coffee. Go long in the spring, go short in the fall.
Can anyone answer this question? Who the hell is buying all the American greenbacks? The damn thing is going through the roof.
Unfortunately, thinking the government can manage the economy is wishful thinking. Managed economies have never worked. And it isn’t going to work now.
OPEC is doing what they want to do because they can — make money. Americans (note I said, “America” and not the government) are going to have to decide if they want the high prices or not and make decisions on how to deal with it. The politicians are going to go about business as usual.
If you want lower prices, stop using the oil (that means more than just driving). Having a hard time going that? Elect a party into office who doesn’t have their hand in the cookie jar.
LibertyLover, I agree with you.
Look people it is in the best interest of the seller to demand as much as the market can pay.
We either fix the problem inside our borders using our resources or we can expect to get our wallets picked.
The oil producing nations are not going to give the fat pig Americans or anybody else a free ride.
If you thought other wise wake up, suck it up, and deal with it.
#22–Pedro==are you being mindlessly negative? Scot was pretty clear about his goal and his reasoning in getting there. You can disagree with the goal, but not the reasoning.
Its multi-factorial issue and solution set. Impossible to discuss on a blog when so many folks won’t even agree what the several problems are other than “gas is too high.”
Pedro: Do we or don’t we (ie==USA) need to get off foreign oil? Thats just a nudge to get your creative juices flowing. Let me know when you figure out how/in what way what Scot posts is disturbingly correct.
#24–Pedro==I may not be following your sense of irony here. Thats ok. We’ll get on track on some other issue.
Eideard==I like those oil derricks with cowboys riding them. Nice thematic images on several layers. Photoshopped or a normal field in Texas?
#18 “But, since we can’t do shit for ourselves, I’ll take whatever I can get. We have to get off the oil.”
Last night in an interview Obama said he’s build more nuke plants. Good start.
I think #19 was really on to somehting there. Back in May 1 US Dollar was worth around 98 cents in Canadian.
#22 – pedro,
@18 again, you try to prove someone wrong by agreeing with them? how smart!
I guess a troll like you doesn’t understand the concept of explaining a point in more detail without the need for proving someone else wrong. I guess you also don’t understand the concept of the word “again” which would ordinarily require that you were responding a second time.
#23 – bobbo,
Thanks for clarifying.
#24 – pedro,
#23 I agree, stop supporting those lazy asses oil gaugers. But that’s not what I was praising #18 for.
The praise was because he said #7 was wrong by agreeing with him.
Let me know when you find the word “wrong” in post #18.
Liberals weren’t cheering for this situation and he wasn’t speaking for all liberals but yes, he was a happy liberal cheering for the current situation. This is brilliant.
Twisting my words a tad, don’t you think?
I said that I couldn’t speak for all liberals, not that liberals weren’t cheering. I’m a geek. I chose my words carefully. Please read them carefully. I said that liberals don’t necessarily blindly follow party lines.
We don’t.
I can name a number of issues on which I disagree with the typical liberal view and yet still consider myself a liberal.
I know that’s all very difficult to understand. It requires that one understand the concept of thinking for oneself.
OPEC lost control of oil prices long ago. The financial speculators now are in control….and they’re not arabs, they’re a bunch of greedy americans and europeans.
Blame arabs all you want, it does nothing.