I've thought along these lines too. Any time the possibility of scarcity it publicized, panic buying makes the problem far worse than it needs to be, as in the

I've thought along these lines too. Any time the possibility of scarcity it publicized, panic buying makes the problem far worse than it needs to be, as in the looming rice shortage or the recent toilet paper shortages. Oil is the lifeblood of industrial civilization, needed for everything from energy to raw materials; panic in the oil markets would threaten industrial civilization.