I have always wondered why we don't refine our own crude oil and survive as much as possible off our own resources. I wonder if anyone can shed some light on why that happens?
As for the Saudi's saying they need oil at $55 a barrel for the Kingdom to survive, does that include the purchases of private aircraft, Ferrari's, and all the other outrageous personal purchases they make?
The simple fact is, the poorer nations in the OPEC cartel cannot afford to cut production otherwise they really will suffer, so I think OPEC may actually struggle to enforce the current output reduction.
Something else to consider is that in the current global economic climate, making moves to increase the price of oil again will only work against interest rate cuts and households struggling with unemployment and debt.
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