Saturday, December 6, 2014

Slump In Oil Price, October 1, 2014 -- December 31, 2014: OPEC Realities


OPEC is dead. The beginning of the end began in 2013 when OPEC disbanded its quota-observation committee, or whatever it was called at the time. Saudi Arabia finally had enough of the charade of quotas.

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Updates

Saudi Arabia says "no" on production freeze at Doha, posted April 24, 2016
How Saudi Arabia overplayed its hand, NY Times, March 12, 2016.
Petrobras slashes oil reserves to lowest level in 14 years, January 31, 2016.
Venezuela - Tick, Tick, Tick; Saudi Arabia facing more austerity; January 31, 2016
OPEC's trillion-dollar miscalculation, Forbes, January 8, 2016
OPEC is not dead, but ..., January 23, 2015
OPEC chief says the group will "try" to ride out the slump; he said the ministers made their decision; will stick by it, "for now" -- December 15, 2014
China buying a gazillion bbls of oil and storing it in super-tankers off-shore -- December 12, 204
OPEC collapsing as oil heads to $50/bbl; important graphic -- December 10, 2014
Oil resumes drop as Iran see oil at $40/bbl if there is OPEC discord -- December 10, 2014
Iran: fall in oil prices is treachery -- December 10, 2014
Blink? Algeria oil minister says OPEC may hold emergency meeting earlier than scheduled June, 2015 meeting -- December 9, 2014

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Updates

OPEC chief says the group will "try" to ride out the slump; he said the ministers made their decision; will stick by it, "for now" -- December 15, 2014. The most interesting thing about this story: the OPEC chief argued that "market weakness did not reflect supply and demand fundamentals and could have been driven by speculators." This comment and the fact that he made it all suggests a) OPEC was blindsided by how fast and how far the price of their only resource would fall; and, b) that it was speculators causing the fall, suggesting that supply and demand should drive significantly higher prices. 

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